4852/Commander Boomerang Goes to Malibu

Commander Boomerang Goes to Malibu
Date of Scene:	07 December 2016
Location:	New York-199999
Synopsis:	Tony gets a new fanboy when Toph drags her best friend to Malibu.
Cast of Characters:	20, 1076, 301

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Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Breathe. Just breathe. It will be fine. It's nothing big, now is it? It's not the first guest Toph is going to bring home to Malibu, oh no. Far from it. Over the years it's not been unusual for random people in the Union to be invited to the extravagant and usually quiet home of one of the Avenger's most prominent members. The house used to be just quiet, a place for Tony Stark to relax on his own. But when you decide to take a teenager in and make her a part of the family, you have to get used to more teenagers coming over, eating your food, being a bit loud, invading the pool and trying to sneak peeks into the downstairs workshop.

    Then again, even if Sokka isn't all too different from many of Toph's friends who get invited over, the blind girl can't help but feel a bit... nervous about this. Even if she hides it rather well as she walks down the road towards Malibu Point, leading the way for Sokka. Not that there's any question about where they are headed as there's only one large, white building in sight on the very edge of the cliff overlooking the beach.

    "So...!" she begins, pointing ahead to the modern house that practically screams luxury and money, "this is where I live now! Goldie designed it, there's the beach down on the other side, I'll show you that place... that's where we have those chocobos... they're kinda like big ostrich horses, except meaner."

    Man, this better go well.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka was at least dressed somewhat nicely. It was a hot place, so he was going fire nation garments. What? He'd saved the world, he deserved the right to wear whatever he felt like. Besides, he looked good in them. He had his sword resting on his shoulders, arms holding it up as he walked, relaxing them on it.

He couldn't help but gush a little whenever some fancy vehicle drove by. "Oh! I read about those! Sports cars! I hear they can go at speeds even higher than a hundred miles an hour! Imagine if we'd had something like that?" he asked with a big laugh.

He hummed and glanced around, shrugging.

"It's nice. Like a big palace." He paused, glanced over and... "Hey, Tophie?" He gave her his calming grin. A shame she couldn't see it. "Don't get so stressed out. I'll do my best not to embarrass you, okay? I won't even touch anything shiny." So she'd best keep all the dim stuff out of sight.

"Giant... chobos... right? Heh. I think I read about them. Hold on?" He opened his lil wrist computer and let out a whistle. "Can we eat 'em?"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Sports cars... they're certainly something. "Goldie has a garage full of them. I... kinda got one of them myself, there was this big guy who thought it was an appropriate gift for me when I was fourteen," Toph explains with a shrug. Sure, give the blind girl a car! Perfect gift that makes sense.

    The house is rather big, and to compare it to a palace isn't too far off, really. The house is pristine white, the gardens are immaculate and green, and the place just looks inviting. As Toph heads up to the gate she does pause when Sokka says her name and tries to reassure her that he won't embarrass her. It's too bad that it's not what she's really fearing. "Eh, you'll do fine. And yeah, not touching a lot of the stuff would help. There's some art there that's really expensive and unique." Not that Goldie would mind, but then again it's Pepper who's spent a lot of time getting the art and all. And nowadays Pepper needs as little stress as possible, that's for sure.

    On the subject of chocobos, Toph can only offer an amused smirk. "Sokka... the chances are more likely that Cuddles will eat you than you ever eating her. She's the feathered superbitch of the multiverse. Heck, she makes even Azula seem gentle in comparison!" Okay, let's get this over with. "Jarvis, I'm home! And I've brought the guest that I told you about!"
The gates swing open, and the prim voice of the house's electronic caretaker can be heard. "Welcome home, Miss Beifong. I trust you will toss your dirty laundry in the correct room?" With the blind girl spending more time in Yu Dao and at her academy she does tend to drag dirty clothes with her home to get them washed, after all. "And welcome... Sokka." How strange it must be to Jarvis that Sokka has no last name. "Mister Stark is occupied at the moment, some business required his direct attention for the moment." At that Toph lets out a silent sigh of relief. Okay, maybe Sokka can get some of that fanboying that is sure to come out before Tony arrives home. Well, at least she can hope!

    "Come on, I'll show you around the first floor," she suggests, leading the way across the driveway, up the front steps and into the entry hall that opens up into the large living room that offers a view of the Pacific Ocean.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded. "Really? You should take me for a drive sometime. It'll be fun!" He... he was joking, right? "One of those like, remote controlled ones, right?" He had been studying!

"And I won't touch anything, really. What's the worst that can happen?"

However, the chocobo comments made him pause. "Feathered bitch of... Worse than AZULA? You're kidding, right? Burn it with fire! I mean, really. Last time I saw Azula she almost broke free from her chains and came within inches of burning me alive! She ruined my map!" he said with a little pout.

He did snort at jarvis. "Eh, come home just to do your laundry, huh? So, does this remind you of old times, any? You know, before you joined us?" He started looking around the house as they went and he managed to make it more than five feet before she'd hear the telltale sign of him accidentally knocking over some priceless glass thing and shattering it. "W-wasn't my fault!" It totally was. "I'll, errr, pay for that." AS IF HE COULD AFFORD IT!

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "I can't drive it! But Goldie and Pepper can, we can ask them sometime. Not that the cars are the coolest thing here, really..." Toph says with a shrug as she enters, swinging her bag off of her shoulder, tossing it aside. Okay, she can wait with taking it to the wash room until /after/ she's shown Sokka around. The worst that could happen with Sokka around...? Well, give her a few minutes and she could come up with a few different scenarios.

    "These chocobos can summon meteors," she adds with an amused grin. "Kinda useful as long as you can control them. Except Cuddles is a dangerous and temperemental bitch, and Nugget... well, Nugget is weird." So neither bird is optimal, but they can be useful in their own way.

    It's kinda hard to compare, really. The Beifong estate in Gaoling and the Stark house here in Malibu. "It's... not the same." Toph's expression is serious, though... there is also a relaxed smile on her face as she turns her face slightly towards Sokka. "Goldie and Pepper never thought I was a helpless and delicate little girl. Or if they did they never treated me as one, at least. Goldie was assigned as my supervising officer shortly after I joined the Union, and well... looking back on it, he kinda used that to get me to learn things I kinda didn't want to at the time. Like reading with my fingers, swimming... stuff happened, so I decided to stay here." And they adopted her, but she would have stayed here even if they hadn't.

    Just when Toph debates whether she should carry her dirty laundry off to the wash room, she 'sees' Sokka moving, and before she knows it... there's that shattering sound, causing her to wince. "Sokka!" Oh man... that's glass too! Pepper's sure to notice that. "It... it's fine," she says, knowing fully well that the thing is probably way out Sokka's price range. Either way Toph reaches out, and bends the floor to scoop the glass pieces together in a heap. "Just... stay three feet from anything that looks expensive, okay?" she suggests, then gestures to the living room. "So, this is the living room area. We'll stay away from the stairs for now, the master bedroom is up those stairs, so nothing fun up there. We're not going down into the workshop until Goldie gets home, kitchen and dining room over in that direction, and then you have the guestrooms over there, my room in that direction, the patio over there..." Yes, Toph is blabbering as she's pointing in various directions from the entry hall.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded. "Yeah, that'd be pretty awesome. Hey, think they'd let me drive? It can't be much worse than an airship and I've flown a ton of those!"

He let out a low whistle at that. "Meteors? Like, sozin's comet? That sounds kinda scary. Fire benders must like them."

He snorted. "Well, yeah." He poked something else. "Anyone who has known you more than a day can just tell how helpless and defenseless you are. Like an armadillo scorpion," he mumbled, before glancing over. "That's what's so cool about you though, Tophie. And hey, if these two can see that, they're already wayyyyy cooler than that old guy you lived with." He makes sure to never call him her father, though. Not anymore, at least.

He walked in, touching things, of course. "Right, nothing too expensive." At least he wasn't breaking anything this time. Of course, when the time came and she showed him the most important thing. "Meat... locker?" he asked, his voice in awe. And once he saw it, he sqweed and stared with glimmering, sparkly eyes. "I want to live here," he said breathlessly. "This. Place. Is! AWESOME!"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Sokka... driving? "There's a test you gotta take before you can drive in most worlds... so no." Sorry to disappoint you, Sokka!

    Indeed, the chocobos can be scary in their own way. "Well, meteors are part earth, so I could use them in battle if I just got Nugget to listen to me more instead of just being a silly ditz..." she muses. That could be really useful. /Could/. Chocobos are fickle creatures, that's for sure.

    As Sokka pokes something else Toph kicks slightly into the floor, causing the floor underneath Sokka to shift him slightly backwards. "No poking. And yeah, they get who I am. So instead of trying to keep me out of harm's way, they go with me on missions. Well, Pepper's taking a break now that's she's pregnant. Missions like that are kinda the ultimate family trips, you know?" the blind girl grins, following Sokka as he decides to follow the hallway to the kitchen. Considering his love of food, and meat in particular, his reaction to the fridge isn't too surprising. "It has more stuff than meat in it, you know," she points out. "Like those cold drinks, ice cream, other tasty food, dessert..." Here she opens it up and pulls out two bottles of iced tea. "Tea is good when it's warm, but it's even better cold... so umm," Toph pretends she's a bit focused on opening the bottle, turning her face down. "You wanna see my room?"

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka sighed. "Really? A test? That sucks. Why would you need a test for something as silly as driving? I drove all kinds of things for years and look how I..." Pause. "A test huh? Not a bad idea."

"Hey, if you want me to help train it, jsut let me know. I'm pretty good at that stuff." No. No he is not.

"Family training? Yeah, like me and my dad. And karata. Heh. Sounds fun. Maybe one time you can come with us on one of our hunting trips. I think you'd like it. And seeing your room would be pretty cool." He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. "Something wrong, Toph? You seem..." He hummed for a minute. "A lil anxious. If you're really worried about me meeting them, it's cool. I mean, I'm just your weird Water Tribe friend you used to go on missions with, right? Not like they NEED to know me or anything."

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
But yes, Tony Stark NEEDS to know everything and everyone. It's his natural mode of existence. Less natural to him is putting ina full day at the office, but he's been finding himself doing that more often as Pepper grows to rival the size of his house. Someone's gotta handle the executive work, and as he's been insisting that she take it easy, that doesn't leave him with many other options. Although he HAS considered, and even partially built a holographic decoy of himself to sit through board meetings.

Right now though he's doing about twice the speed limit down the PCH with the top down, belting out the vocals to some Rise Against screamfest blasting from the speakers. A cop starts to peel out after him from behind a speed trap but then slams on the breaks, puzzled and annoyed to see his laser sighter reporting 70mph dead even. It's good to be the king.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Sokka, these things are heavy and fast. And there's lots of them. I don't blame them for making sure people know how to follow /those/ rules." Heck, just being a passenger with Tony and Pepper can be scary considering how fast they tend to drive at times! But at least Sokka realizes just /why/ tests are necessary.

    Hunting trips doesn't sound like something that Toph would overly enjoy, at least not from what she knows about them. "Eh... I don't think hunting is for me. Especially not if you're gonna hunt at the South Pole." Speaking of which, she needs to tell Tony or Pepper about the trip. Maybe Tony would be the best for that, just so Pepper doesn't stress out unnecessarily.

    Okay, off to see her room. No big deal. Though she does tense up a bit when Sokka's hand falls on her shoulder, her eyes widening a bit. "Oh? Oh, well, I did tell them about you when I first joined the Union! So they do know about you! And Aang and Katara too." Of course. "A-and it's nice if they like my friends, you know?"

    It's a short trip from the kitchen to Toph's bedroom, which is a rather large room for most people. And it's absolutely filled. There's a large bed against one wall, and around the bed there's shelves upon shelves, filled to the brim with pieces of rock and metal. Some of them have been bended into various figurines and sculptures, others seem semi-finished. Then there's just lumps of ore. There's a desk with a computer on it, some books and a strange metallic glove resting there, various bags... there are some clothes hanging over the back of a chair, some sports balls, simple pieces of jewelry on a dresser, along with toiletries. What might be a bit more curious is a strange piece of armour that's standing in the corner. Red and gold, and slightly shorter than Toph is now.

    "So... yeah. My room," Toph says with a shrug as she stands by the door, letting Sokka take a chance to look around. After all, there is precious little he can break in here. Well, it's the computer, but everything else? Nah.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded. "Well, if you don't want to, you don't need to." He then snickered. "Oh? If they like me? You better be careful. They might decide they don't want a boy like me hanging out their little girl anymore. They might get scared I'll try to do something silly like flirt with you." He snickered then. "And get buried under ground for it," he said with a chuckle, reaching out to ruffle her hair.

He looked around hr room for a bit. Then she'd hear the gasp. The squeak. The foaming. the pointing. The "WHAT IS THAT?!!!" he yelled, pointing at the armour, before running over and... poking it. "This has got to be the absolute COOLEST! How does it work? What's it made of? Does it protect against fire bending? Can you metal bend it? Is it some kind of medival thing? It looks so COOL!"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Maybe Tony would like Sokka... they both have the same type of humour, after all. And Sokka's ego is not going to overshadow Tony's either. So she can only hope. Still... At Sokka's words Toph lets out a huff, crossing her arms across her chest as she turns her face away. "Heh, like they can decide my friends for me..." She is becoming more independent, after all. With the academy open she does have responsibilities there too, and they aren't hindering her in any way. The hairruffle does make Toph turn her head a bit away. "I'm not /that/ little, I turn sixteen in about three months!" So there.

    So... there's enough to see in the room, considering how much stuff Toph brings home. And there are also gifts she's gotten from her fellow Unionites over the years. But of course the thing that draws the most attention is her first Halloween costume. There's amusement on Toph's face as she arches an eyebrow, stepping forward as Sokka comments on the armour, which is just a modified and smaller version of the armour it used to be before it was scrapped. "Oh, it's made of a gold and titanium mix," she informs him. "And yeah, it protects from bullets, fire, other elements... it's pretty sturdy!" Can she metalbend it? Toph grins at that, and gestures towards it, making the head of the armour move upwards. "This kind of metal is one of the first types of metal that I actually figured out how to metalbend with, really." Sure, it lead to her getting a slightly stern talking to, but all's well. "It does look cool, huh? It's a bit too small for me now though, it was my costume for a party some years back. I've kinda grown since then."

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka blinked. "Oh, huh. Sixteen. I guess you're almost an adult then, aren't you? That's..." He blinked and shook his head. Yeah, he wasn't even going to think about that. It was just... weird. Toph as an adult. Next thing they'd say she was going to become some kind of police officers. Ha. That'd be hilarious.

He nodded, flicking the metal and nodding. He paused for a moment before glancing back. "It's really cool. Kind of reminds me of the day of the comet." He got back up and walked to her bed, sitting down and patting the bed. "You know. We were so busy then, I never had a chance to really ask. How'd you learn to metal bend, anyway? I mean, awesome as you are I'm sure it didn't just pop up and happen, right?'

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Yeah, it's kinda weird. Four years ago I was still stuck in Gaoling, sneaking out of the house to go to Earth Rumble VI, beating up the Boulder in the ring and all..." Time flies. "It's not like we can stay kids forever either, not that I would want to. I mean, where's the fun in that?"

    The day of the comet... heh. "Oh yeah, you made that armour for Appa!" she comments with a big grin. "I dunno if Aang has ever made him wear that again... hopefully he hasn't needed it." Yeah, that big flying carpet wasn't too bad once you got used to him. Once Sokka is done inspecting the armour, Toph does put it back in order, tilting the head back down. Though she does blink, arching an eyebrow when Sokka pats the spot next to him on the bed. Quickly she pretends to be a bit busy getting the armour to stand a bit differently. "Ah, well, it... was during a mission right before I turned thirteen, actually! At the time we were busy in Ba Sing Se, remember? When Appa was missing..."

    After a few seconds she does turn away from the armour, walking over as she flops down on her butt on the bed, though keeping her distance a bit from Sokka. "When I first joined here I heard that there had been another Toph... an adult version of me who could bend metal. So I thought that I should try to figure it out. Except I couldn't, no matter how much metal I studied." A heavy sigh leaves the girl, and she seems pensive as she thinks back. "The Feds and the Firebenders had taken over an iron mine. I called in some Union peeps, we fought.. and Goldie was pushed into this blast furnace. So... I had to bend him out," she adds with what she hopes looks like a casual shrug. "Guess that's what made me able to focus at that moment."

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded and crossed his arms. "Well, don't worry, Toph. You'll always be that lil kid I know and love, heh heh," he said with that big grin of his before leaning back and laying on her bed, feet dangling over the side.

He listened to every word, his eyes closed. Then he nodded. "I see. Yeah. That... that'd do it," he whispered. "Having someone you care about just... right in front of..." He took a long, slow breath. "That's just the kind of awesome person you are, Toph. Even when it's impossible, you're too stubborn to ever give up. And then you're amazing enough to pull it off, even though by all rights you shouldn't, no one should be able to."

He gave a shrug. "So, does this mean we should start dumping your students into big blast furnaces, too? I mean, it shouldn't be that hard. The dark one alone looks like a fierce wind could topple him over. Why... he's practically a shadow~"

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
There's a faint noise from the floor below, though of course the sound and sense of the garage door sliding open to admit Tony's ridiculously overpriced vehicle of the day would be well known to Toph.

And Jarvis knows it, too, which is why he doesn't bother to announce that her dad is home from work. He does, however, alert Tony to the presence of Toph's guest, lest Mr. Stark decide to walk around his house in the nude again.

A minute later there's the sound of footsteps taking the stairs two at a time up from the workshop... and right on past Toph's room to the upper floor to check on Pepper. Aww.

Finding his wife still very pregnant and napping soundly, Tony just takes a minute to take off his shirt and tie and change into a t-shirt (black, with a picture of a red clownfish and the title, "Finding Francis") before he saunters back downstairs to harrass Toph and her little friend.

"I keep telling her to toss them in a pit with Cuddles and some metal bars and see how quick they learn," he remarks from the doorway, "but she has this persistent idea about keeping them alive."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Even as Sokka flops back on the bed Toph remains seated, resting her hands on her knees. Always that little kid...? She focuses instead on the topic of her metalbending discovery. "Eh, yeah... Goldie wasn't an annoying kind of adult, and he showed he cared for me, you know?" There was no way she would ever give up when it comes to keeping her family safe, just like how Tony and Pepper would do. "If I had listened to people telling me things were impossible I would still be stuck in Gaoling with my parents..." Instead of going with Sokka and the others when Aang needed an earthbending teacher.

    Suddenly Toph sits up a little straighter, and she swallows a bit as she listens with some confusion. No, there's no hiding what's going on in the house from Toph, especially when she has her feet on the ground. So Jarvis seldom needs to inform Toph of who's coming and going. It doesn't surprise her when Tony heads to check up on Pepper first, and it gives her a moment to mentally prepare herself some more. Okay, this will be okay.

    "My students aren't me. So tossing them in blast furnaces would be stupid." Even more stupid since she herself got injured when she finally figured out how to metalbend. "They'll figure it out sooner or later, but they need to do it in their own time." With some firm teaching, that is. Oh man, here he comes...

    As Tony steps in and offers his suggestion of how to help her students reach a little epiphany, the blind girl can't help but sigh as she pushes herself up from the bed, then reaches out to yank Sokka upright. "And I keep telling you, nobody can focus with that feathered menace breathing down their necks!" With that done she turns towards Tony, who should know his adoptive daughter well enough now to see... that she's a bit tense as she gestures to the older boy. "Dad, meet Sokka, the boomerang guy from Team Avatar. Sokka, meet my dad... Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man."

    Okay, you two... get along. Please.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded. "Yeah. Heh. To think when I first saw you I thought you'd actually lose. Happy I didn't bet, I'd have lost my money. Instead I got a fancy belt, at least for a bit." It went with his bag.

He paused and listened, well, someone was her. He glanced to his sword, propped up by the bed, he wondered if he should have left it by the door. Was it rude to carry it around with him? Eh, star sword. Didn't matter.

He opened his mouth to say something, but then paused. His eyes wavered to Toph for a second. Was she... He took a gulp. Crud. Toph WAS nervous. Was she really that worried he'd embarrass her? Well, dang it. The things he did for his friends. He bowed awkwardly. "Hello, sir. Toph has told me plenty about you, sir! It's a pleasure to meet you at least, sir." He was trying but he wasn't good at the whole... TRYING to be all respectful and stuff.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony smirks. He's met enough fanboys to recognize the nerves. And he understands, really. He's a famous, important and all around awesome person, meeting him IS intimidating.

"Hi," he replies briskly. "So you're the guy who thought my wife was a bowl of pepper, huh?" What a first impression.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Like I'd ever lose at earthbending," Toph snorts in amusement... That belt is hers, fair and square! And proudly displayed on the wall, thank you very much.

    Okay. So it seems like the first meeting here is okay so far... Sokka is perhaps being overly polite, but eh, that's usual for him. Like when he was trying to explain the invasion plan and he instead began blabbering. And Tony is his usual self, joking. Oh right, Sokka had said that... Heh. Too bad she hadn't been on the radio at the time. "Well, Sokka finally got his ass in gear to join the Union, and well... it made sense to show him around," Toph explains, as if she's ever needed a reason to drag her friends over before. "So I showed him around the first floor a bit now, thought that maybe you could show him the workshop and Mark 42?" Oh yes, that's a suggestion. "Sokka kinda liked the armour," she adds and gestures to the Halloween costume from when she went as Iron Man. If he loved /that/, then she's a bit curious to see how he reacts to the real thing!

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded, leaning back and rubbing the back of his head. "Eh heh heh. Well, you know. I was just playing around, I hope I didn't make her too salty about it. I'd hate too add too much spice to her thoughts of me before we even meet, but I'm sure we'll curry on in the long run." Then urked. He couldn't help it, they just came to him.

"Ehhh... heh heh. Oh, yeah, the armour is pretty cool! Reminded me of this really cool thing Toph did on the air ships. Turned a door into something like that and then kicked some fire bending butt." His grin widened. "A workshop, huh? I'd love to see it! Blow up the other 41 labs already?" And then urked. Right. Toph's dad. Can't be so casual!

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"He likes armor, huh?" Tony muses teasingly. Then comes Sokka's word salad of puns, and his smirk slowly fades into a flinty stare at the young man. His lips thin into an unamused line. He holds the stare for several seconds, then laughs. "No wonder Toph likes you, we make the same stupid jokes."

He gestures with a jerk of his chin toward the stairway behind him. "Yeah, sure, come on down. Although I'd hate to disappoint; I haven't blown anything up in a while." A beat. "...inside the house," he clarifies.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Through the years and various missions Tony has had enough chances to see Toph show off her metalbending, which also includes her bending her own makeshift armour out of things she finds in the field. But she keeps quiet, letting Sokka talk for now as long as he doesn't say anything utterly stupid. It's a good thing Tony isn't too big on formalities either.

    Maybe it's a good thing that Toph can't see the change on Tony's face, otherwise she would certainly react. Instead a reaction comes after he laughs and then speaks up. Behind Sokka, Toph's eyes widen a bit, and she quickly turns her face a bit to the side. It's a good thing that Sokka is looking at Tony and can't see the faint blush crossing her cheeks for a moment.

    Okay, off to the workshop they go! Toph nods, then heads out of the room first. "You can always blow something up on the beach if you need to demonstrate Mark 42 for him," she suggests. That way it would be quiet inside the house for Pepper. Either way, Toph's quick to hurry down to the workshop, walking over to one of the work benches as she waits for Tony and Sokka to follow her. "This place is usually a bit noisy, dad likes music when he works." Her hand moves along the bench, her fingers idly searching for any metal to fiddle with.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka snickered softly. "Likes me? I wouldn't go THAT far. I think at this point she mostly just tolerates me because I'm one of the few guys around who can take her punch without a few broken limbs. Well, and her bending." Yup, fortunately for Toph he had no idea. Long pause, then he snickers. "Then again, she might just like me because I'm a good punching bag. Alas, the cruel fate of being just the guy with the boomerang."

He followed him down to the lab. "What? A lab without blowing stuff up? That doesn't even make sense!" Once they were down there, though, he stared. His eyes widened and... "It's... it's... SO COOL! WHAT'S THIS? WHAT'S THIS? I CAN'T BELIEVE MY EYES! WHAT'S THIS? WHAT'S--" Boom. Smokey sokka. He coughed a little smoke. "I-I think I know now..." How he'd managed to run around and touch half the stuff in the room in a matter of seconds would be anyone's guess.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Dummy, ever at the ready, follows up the minor explosion by spraying Sokka down with a whooshing blast of fire retardant foam. "That should help settle him," Tony remarks dryly, as he saunters over to his desk and picks up a snazzy looking high tech headset. He fits it precisely over his temples, and shoots a look over at his now-frosty guest, making sure he's watching before he sends the neural signal to the suit listening in the corner. Mark 42 whirs into life, optics brightening as the helmet rises to scan the room. It zeros in on Sokka swiftly and marches with brisk, heavy clanking strides in his direction. Vaguely threatening really.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Sure, Sokka is one of the guys who ends up getting punched a lot by Toph, though fortunately the bruises fade rather quickly. Though it appears she offers no input on whatever she thinks about the poor abused boy and his status as a punching bag for whatever reason.

    This kind of reaction was to be expected, and Toph stands by the work bench, listening to Sokka's heartbeat race as he sees the various things in the workshop that is certainly something else. And Toph smiles and shakes her head a bit where she stands. "Told you he would do this," she asides to Tony. And then he blows something, even though she's not exactly sure /how/ he managed to do that. "And that." It's a good thing that Dummy is there to help.

    It's clear that Toph is a bit curious when Tony puts on the high tech headset, knowing fully well what's going to happen since she's witnessed this many times over the years she's been living here and working alongside Tony in the field. As the suit responds to the command and steps forward Toph can't help but grin a bit. "/That/," she begins, "is the real deal. The armour I have in my room is old scrap parts and just the coating from one of those old Iron Man suits." It should be easy to guess /why/ Tony Stark is also known as Iron Man now, huh?

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka stared at it, his eyes going wide. Even the foam didn't reduce it. Instead he just pointed at it. "Habit! Dab, wa.... oohhhhh! Ohhhhhhh!" And, threatening or not, he was over to it a moment later, tapping, pointing, examining.

"Is it metal bending? No no Toph would have one then, this is technology, right? Oh my gosh I can't believe you people can do this! It's so amazing! And it moves? How are you controlling it? Is it remote controlled? Is that what the head set is? This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen! Our world is hundreds, maybe thousands of years from having something like this! How did you even make something like this? Do other people have them? This is so amazingggggg!" He totally shrieked like a teenage girl on prom night. And was jumping up and down.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Mark 42 puts up a hand sharply in a very clear 'settle down, kid' gesture. Tony, however, is smirking again. He taps the headset against his temple with one finger. "This," he is more than happy to explain, "amplifies the signals from my nervous system and transmits them to the suit. I have about four dozen subdermal microrepeaters implanted... well, subdermally. Jarvis," he raises his voice suddenly in a crisp, commanding tone, "Gimme a hand."

He holds up his right arm imperiously, and the right gauntlet of the suit neatly detaches itself from the interlocking armor with a series of smooth whirring noises, then flies across the room to wrap around his forearm. He flexes his now metal-gloved fingers and grins. "Cool, huh?"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Well... most people have a different reaction upon seeing an Iron Man suit for the first time. Then again, Sokka is Sokka.

    Is it metalbending? "Hardly." The thought of Tony being a metalbender, now that makes Toph smirk with amusement. Well, he works with metal in his own way, and that's good enough.

    It does seem like Tony's ego is appeased, which is always a good thing. He does sound happy about having a curious and appreciative fanboy, otherwise he wouldn't take the time to explain it. Which is good. They're getting along, not that she was really nervous about /that/. Let the two get to talk, she decides, and then she begins bending something out of the sheet of metal she picked up from Tony's workbench.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka would not settle down, he moved around a bit. "Subdermal? Err, hold on." Tapped on his wrist computer a few times before... "You have them INSIDE you? How does that work? Isn't that like stabbing yourself? That's so amazing!"

And then the right arm flies off and connects with the man and he gaspes. He tries to look into the arm socket of the robot, too, just staring. "This is amazing. To think that stuff like this could exist, it's like--" He went quiet for a moment, before chuckling. "No wonder Toph likes you so much," he said with a laugh. "You're another one of these incredible, amazing people, aren't you? This... this is just amazing. Eh... heh heh... heh... eh... way better than her old dad, heh. Did... you build all this yourself?"

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"Well," Tony relents with false modesty, "Jarvis helped. But then again, I built him too, so yeah. I built it myself." He spins suddenly, bracing his left hand against his armored forearm, and with a swift *whine-thwump* sound of a repulsor discharging he fires a bolt of force across the workshop and knocks a over a heavy tool chest with a deafening crash. Dummy immediately starts wheeling himself over to it to pick it up, like a good robot.

"Yeah," Tony agrees, "Well -- not so much like stabbing as injecting yourself over and over with a big needle." He's been stabbed. It definitely hurt more. But... yeah, I'm pretty amazing." Done showing off for the moment, he leans casually against the desk, resting his weight on his gauntleted hand. "Toph tells me you've invented your share of clever gadgets too, though. I mean, my world may be way ahead of yours technologically, but /someone's/ gotta invent the first hot air balloon."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "That's kinda what subdermal means, meatbrain," Toph asides from where she's leaning against the workbench, "under your skin."

    As for how Toph regards Tony as a father figure, she snorts. "There's many amazing inventors out there, that doesn't mean I like them." No, it's not Tony's brain nor looks that made the blind earthbender decide to stick around Malibu and abide by the lesson plans Tony made for her. That much is clear, as getting Toph to do something she doesn't want to is often a futile endeavour.

    Sokka's inventions might not be on the same level compared to things you find in this workshop, but then again, he doesn't have the same resources and knowledge to build upon as Tony had. "Maybe... you could read some engineering books or something?" Toph offers with a shrug to Sokka.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka nodded, staring at the robot. He heard tony, but he didn't seem to react much. He then blinked. "Hot air..." Then sighed. "Yeah... I... really didn't do that, though. It was the professor. He was the one who... figured out the tough stuff I just... helped him when he got a little stuck." And there was that sound in Sokka's voice again. The one Toph had heard before. "Really, this is amazing. I could work a hundred years and never even think of anything like this. It... really shows just how amazing everything in the multiverse is, doesn't it? Heh... heh heh..." He was smiling, but Toph could probably tell it was a forced laugh.

"Hmmm? Oh. Yeah. I've been... reading a lot of things like that." He held up his wrist ban. "The whole computer thing? Pretty amazing. Can... do all kinds of things with it."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    The moment Sokka's voice changes, Tony should be able to see Toph's expression change as she lets out a silent sigh... and then she bends the piece of metal she was bending towards Sokka's butt. "Aang told me that was all your idea!" Does... she sound angry? "I told you, you're not stupid, and you wouldn't have joined the Union if you didn't have what it takes!" This is the attitude that Toph often displays with her students. Firm, pushy... and loud.

    "If you had grown up in this world you would have been making stuff like this, and you know it! So stop being such a downer!" she continues, pushing away from the table to walk over next to Sokka, her arms crossed sternly across her chest. "You had the idea for those submarines, you made the space sword... are you so thick in the head that you forgot what your own master told you? Sheesh!" If Sokka doesn't straighten up he will get a firm punch to his side.

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
"Everyone's gotta start somewhere," Tony remarks with shocking magnanimity, idly scratching his nose with his non-armored hand. "I can point you at some good resources if you're really interested. Hell, I even got Toph to learn to read," he tosses the Earthbender a teasing wink, knowing she'll hear it in his voice even though she can't see it.

"And that suit over there?" he waves his arm toward the display cases and points out Mark 1 in all its hulking ugliness, "I built that in a cave. Out of a bunch of salvaged junk. Your only limit," he concludes, swiveling his pointing finger back to the middle of Sokka's forehead, "is what YOU think you can't do."

"Now," he continues, giving his arm a shake to send the gauntlet flying back to reattach itself to the rest of the suit, "Lemme see this star sword of yours."

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka blinked when she raised her voice, he quickly lifted his hands. "H-hey, Toph. It wasn't, I mean, he got them to float. I was just the guy who figured out how to make them go up and down when needed! I-I'm not saying--"

And then she punched him and said that. He opened his mouth to object, but then he stopped and smiled, leaning forward and ruffled her hair instead. "Heh. Well, I guess sometimes I do forget, don't I? Good thing I've got you to help keep me from being dumb, right?" he said with a light chuckle. "Yeah, you're probably right. If I'd grown up here I'd have probably built a suit the size of a building! With... with a giant... light shooting gun! Like those weapons I saw!"

He gave a light chuckle before glancing towards Tony. "Yeah, I'd like that. Thanks. I've been doing a bunch of free studying, but some direction would be nice and err... sure." He drew the blade and held it out. Despite his casualness, when he held the sword, unsheathed, he held it with the utmost respect. He knew full well how deadly it was. "Careful, it's one of a kind." Keen edge, able to slice through steel, made of some weird space rock... a one of a kind weapon indeed. Though probably not the best sword he'd seen.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    It helps when Tony confirms what Toph is saying. Perhaps Sokka will listen when more people state the truth that Sokka has problems seeing. At the mention of her learning to read Toph makes a heavy mock sigh, as if pretending that learning to read was the worst thing ever. "If I could learn how to read, you can learn new things you never thought you'd do too, Snoozles," she points out. Though inwardly she's happy for that line from Tony, and he should be able to tell.

    Perhaps Tony will be able to convince Sokka of what Toph has been trying to punt into his head... Well, she can hope! It's hard for Toph to see Sokka down and doubting himself, especially after he's shown just how much he's able to do. Luckily he seems to be cheered up easily, and well, that makes Toph relax a bit.

    When Sokka shows his spacesword to Tony, Toph idly reaches a hand up to rub at her upper left arm and the ore she had bended into that arm ring. "Also, dad... Sokka wanted my help with bending a Firenation ship out of the ice down at the South Pole. So we're going to be there for a day or two," she quickly informs Tony. "In case you or Pepper need me."

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony takes the blade with the careful reverence due to a deadly weapon. He's designed enough of those to know. After testing the balance he murmurs, "Metal analysis please," and faint bluish lights scan over the object in his hands, while the monitors on his desk begin to scroll with lines of machine code.

Watching the metallurgical readouts, Tony barely registers Toph's comment at first. "South Pole? Mm... uh, sure, dress warm." He shifts his grip on the sword and extends his arm into an experimental lunge, before offering it back to Sokka hilt first. "Some nice metalwork there," he commends. It's not as if he hasn't done his turn with a blacksmith's anvil, either, so he knows what he's talking about.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka blushed and took it, grinning from ear to ear like a dope. "Heh, really? My master helped me forge it. Was tough work. Though I'm sure Toph knows that." He glanced towards her. "Bet you didn't think I noticed you guys staring at me during the night, did you?" He sickered. "I will admit, it's not every day you get to see the epitome of manliness like me work a forge, so I suppose it was quite the treat for all of you." Considering the people were his sister, aang and toph, that was obviously a joke.

"Oh, right. Ummm, should probably try to let you know what I've been studying, so you can best steer me..." He'd then bring up his book files and notes and... well... it was actually quite impressive. The things he'd been learning and studying. I mean, sure, about HALF his notes were wrong. But for someone who's most advanced pure technology before he came along was steam boats, it was pretty incredible. He'd just need some direction. And he even had half an idea how to actually send the thing. He was picking up on computers, fast.

"I'd heard about Toph reading, gonna be honest. It's going to be a blast finally being able to send her notes. I've been looking into this brail thing. Also started learning sign language... then realized it wasnt really applicable here."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Okay, that's no objection there, not that she expected one really. But still. Good. "Sokka made the space sword from a meteorite," Toph explains. "So it's really unique." And man, was it a bother finding that sword again when it fell down during that airship battle. But still, Sokka's reaction to losing that sword... how could she say no?

    Him joking about him being a sight though, that does make Toph let out a snort as she turns her face away a bit again from both Tony and Sokka.

    It should be clear now to Tony that Sokka is indeed just like how Toph described him over the years. A bit dorky, but with an obvious quick with and sharp brain. Except it just needs some more stimulation. "Why don't you just go to school here after you learn how to read English?" Heck, he could do it, right?

    Either way, it seems that the South Pole trip has been clarified up with one of the higher authorities. "I'll dress warm," Toph promises, "And I'll also wear boots so my toes don't freeze and fall off. And I'll keep my radio on in case Bitchin' Camaro decides to arrive early for Christmas." After all these years and some serious mistakes she knows better to turn her radio off completely. "So... we're leaving tomorrow then, Sokka?"

Tony Stark (301) has posed:
Tony gives the list of sources and notes a quick glance over, though in all probability Jarvis is recording it for later reference, too. He clicks his tongue. "Keep an eye on your email," he says. "I'll have Jarvis work up a lesson plan for you, should clarify some of this stuff."

He pauses, not sure he just heard that sign language comment. Really? "...uh, no, it wouldn't be," he agrees. "I'm sure Toph would be happy to school you in Braille, though." She made him learn the rudiments when he made her learn it, after all.

Jarvis interjects politely, "Sir, you requested to be informed when Mrs. Stark woke up..."

"Oh. Yeah. C'mon kids, tour's over. I have food to order and claim to have home cooked." As if Pepper would ever be fooled.

Sokka (1076) has posed:
Sokka snorted, nodding as he poked away at his computer. "English? Nah, I figured that out ages ago. It's really not that different from fire nation text, to be honest. Wayyyyy easier to understand and grasp than those old priceless hundreds of year old scrolls that Katara decided to just get wet." No he would NEVER let that go.

"And don't worry, Tophie, I'll take good care of you. I'll carry you around if it comes to it," he joked. He then blinked. "Huh, school? Not sure. I've never been to a school aside from that old haiku one I fell into," he said with a shrug. "Just seemed like the kind of place you sent your kids to keep them out of trouble. Like an extra expensive day care." Pause. "No offense. Hm? Oh! Right, coming," he paused and let toph go ahead of him. Now that the initial rush was over he... did keep an eye on toph when she want. You know, in case there was any non earth/metal she might hit her toes on.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Sokka figured out how to read English already? Is it due to the translation effect or something? The blind girl blinks at that, though she does nod when Tony comments on her being able to teach Sokka how to read Braille.

    "School here is nothing like expensive daycare if you ask me, it's about studying... at least the good schools are, I guess," she offers with a shrug. Though the warning from Jarvis about Pepper waking up does catch Toph's attention. The blind girl grins, amused as Tony decides that they're ordering out today. And she even punches Sokka lightly in the shoulder again. "I don't need you to carry me, just tell me where to go so I don't slide down some ice or fall into the water!" Well, better enjoy the warmth of Malibu for today before it's down to the freezing cold of the South Pole tomorrow then.