[center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjgwLmRjZGE2Mi5WR2hsSUVScGNtVmpkRzl5LjE/raleway.regular.webp[/img][/center] [b]Date/Time:[/b] [i]November 11th, 2022. 6:02 PM.[/i] [b]Location(s):[/b] [i]Redline PRT Headquarters[/i] [hr][hr] The next face to show up was one that actually surprised the Director; Jane Rosner. Truth be told, with how she'd barely managed through the interview process, he hadn't expected her to muster the courage to walk through the front door, much less make it to The Wards' Lounge. He cracked a small smile. Perhaps things weren't so hopeless if someone like her could find the drive to make it here. The smile dropped as quickly as it formed, giving a curt nod to the awkward Tinker, waving with her scrap-metal prosthetic. [color=fff79a]"Good to have you. Go ahead and take a seat."[/color] Well, this made for two. Both of the Tinkers. Huh, what a weird coincidence. He casually motioned towards the seats lining the rounded table, mostly towards the end away from himself and Workshop. If he had a decent grasp on this girl, he knew she'd keep her distance....But he couldn't just have her milling about either. The next one was less surprising, though the stunt he'd pulled mere minutes ago was a different story entirely....Regardless, he was here....And Fukuda was quick to note the brief change of face upon just [i]seeing[/i] Beverly. The files did mention they met before, supposedly being the cause of the 'time sphere' that now entrapped one of the old clunkers down at the docks, serving as some strange tourist trap. Guess it wasn't a fond memory for the kid. The Director could at least respect his [s]mostly[/s] subtle attempts to either distance himself or keep an eye on the Tinker gal, though he had to wonder how this could affect the team as a whole... For another time. He gave a wry grin in response to Overclock's, meeting the young man's lack of enthusiasm with his own. This wasn't ideal for almost anyone here; he'd have to learn to deal. [color=fff79a]"So you are. So you are..."[/color] Sean here was a great grab for The Wards, but when it came to his attitude and ideals, he brought his own set of problems....For now, though, there were yet more faces to concern himself with. Which happened to be the one he'd least expect. Wilbur actually showed. He'll be damned. Welp, that meant he'd have to pass these earbuds around sooner than later, once there were some more members; hopefully at least one more would show. But as for the kid himself...Fukuda watched with weary eyes as the boy strode through with that aura of smugness he'd grown used to in his brief stint at HQ prior to this, casually greeting the others and just as casually seating himself next to the Director, already idly drumming away on the armrests. This was gonna get annoying face. [color=fff79a]"Call me Director. As for the question....You can be the judge of that."[/color] The deadpan expression that turned to Will spoke a thousand words. Not surprising, given the stunt he had pulled last time; the boy should've known better than to mess with a man's coffee when he works 18-hour shifts seven days a week. The next arrival was the real oddball; the orphan boy, Andrew. Striding over, he said his piece to the Director before getting caught up seeing something of a local celebrity, though in Fukuda's mind that was stretching things a fair bit for Overclock. Oh well, at least he actually [i]introduced himself.[/i] Though...'Codename'? Really? What was this, a spy movie? Granted, he [i]had[/i] gotten the retinal scanner installed....Still, he gave a nod of acknowledgement to the young man as his attention was drawn away once more to a new face. Morgan wasn't a very subtle young lady, as Fukuda was quick to catch the smile that had played on her face prior to setting it to a cold exterior like she had pulled in the interview. Maybe enough to pull one on a few of the kids here, but it wouldn't last long; with any hope (heh), the other Wards wouldn't give her a reason to keep her guard up. He returned her gesture with a small smile. Rachel had spoken glowingly of the young lady for the past week, even moreso than the other Wards, which gave the Director a [i]small[/i] shot of confidence. Maybe not everyone in this room would force him into some hellish balancing act. He found his smile leaving as she went off to the side, hanging silently around one of their terminals. Seriously, now? Old habits, he supposed...Oh well. [color=fff79a]"Before we continue, you all will be needing these."[/color] Casually reaching into the depths of his suit, Fukuda produced a number of small containers with a glass top, each one holding a pair of earbuds. For those sitting, he slid them across the table with well-calculated force, each one stopping short of falling off the end. For the two still standing.... [color=fff79a]"Heads up. And don't drop 'em, they're expensive."[/color] With a toss, two containers went off towards Jane and Morie each. The Director was fairly confident Morie would catch it just fine, but Jane...Well, let's just hope she didn't try and use that clunker of an arm. Clearing his throat a bit, Fukuda spoke up. [color=fff79a]"Those earbuds will allow communication between the lot of you, as well as between you and me."[/color] With that, he tapped one of his ears, showing off a similar set of earbuds. [color=fff79a]"Additionally...They're a necessary precaution to ensure Gray Man can't pull anything on you."[/color] He jabbed a thumb towards the young man at his side, unceremoniously ousting him. [color=fff79a]"Once you've got those situated, I believe some introductions are in order..."[/color] At this, he glances off to the side at the one who would be dubbed Memento, making a small motion of his head, the intent clear; 'get over here'.[hr][hr] [center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjgwLmVjN2IwOC5WMjl5YTNOb2IzQS4y/if.regular.webp[/img][/center] [b]Date/Time:[/b] [i]November 11th, 2022. 5:56 PM.[/i] [b]Location(s):[/b] [i]Redline PRT Headquarters[/i] [hr][hr] Oh, this was [i]so[/i] exciting! When she heard the 'bing' echo throughout the mostly empty lounge, Bev couldn't help but have her eyes dart over! She found her vision greeted by a girl who, if she guessed, was maybe about her age, though she couldn't have claimed to recognize her. She would've if she'd seen her before! She was at the taller end of things like Beverly herself, though with short, choppy hair in comparison to her own, though of course, one thing caught her eyes above all others... And it was beautiful! Sure, to some, it'd look like a piecemeal collection of gears and springs and other such small metal knick-knacks, with the inclusion of a workwear glove and...Was that a flashlight's bulb? It was. Huh! Well, regardless, Workshop didn't - perhaps couldn't - see it in that way. She instead noticed the intricate work, how all the pieces managed to shift just right to create movement, the subtle clicking of springlock as metallic joints worked their magic. It was nothing short of incredible to her eyes, and truth be told, she only noticed the girl's greeting because she'd done it with her contraption of an arm. Blinking away for a bit and trying to gather her more normal thoughts, she returned the wave with a smile on her face. She was already excited for this, but a [i]fellow Tinker?[/i] Or at least, she'd gleaned that much from the make of her limb. How awesome! She'd never [i]properly[/i] met other Parahumans before, but this was already shaping up to be incredible! Another toll of the elevator snapped her attention away from the other metalhead in the room, landing her eyes on...A surprisingly familiar figure. As they both locked eyes for a moment in his strides toward the table, Bev couldn't help the small pout on her face. She wasn't dense enough to miss how he tensed at the mere [i]sight[/i] of her. That hurt....It had been an honest mistake! His fault for jumping a girl in the middle of designing highly unstable technology! They'd only met the once, and rude as it sounded, with how things ended up, she was sorta hoping not to run into him again anytime soon.... Looks like she wasn't getting that wish. Unwittingly to her, the movements of her hands as they glossed over her latest contraption grew in speed and became a bit more erratic with the swing of her mood on Overclock's arrival. Still, she mustered up a smile again; weak, in comparison to the one she'd granted Jane, but it was there. [color=f26522]"Heya, Overclock. Yeah, it has been a bit, hasn't it?"[/color] Somehow, him immediately referring to her as Workshop hurt even more, like he was distancing her from being a normal person. Here, right now, weren't they just some kids, really? Jumping straight to the silly made-up names just felt plumb wrong. Oh well...Guess it's what she signed up for. But she definitely [i]didn't[/i] sign up for the rest of this awkward situation. Just as he kept watch over her, Beverly returned the favor, a glower in her eyes that didn't match the quickly drained smile she possessed. Still, she tried her best to recover herself; so what if Overclock's here, acting like a butt over something that happened months ago? Still plenty of new, exciting faces to see! She regained a fraction of the energy she had just had earlier, eager to see who showed up next! This guy looked a bit younger than Bev or the others. Maybe 14, 15? He was a little on the shorter end in comparison to the rest of them, which she attributed to the age gap, with sharp murky-green eyes that seemed to quickly appraise everyone else in the room, herself included. He also dressed awful fancy by her standards; honestly, it reminded her a bit of Mr. Fukuda. Casually as can be, he shot a smooth greeting to the room before sliding into the seat next to the Director, and making a small joke. Daycare? Yet again, Beverly could feel a small pout growing. Pokin' fun or no, she was certain Mr. Fu-...The Director put a lot of work into this. The Initiative deserved a bit more respect, in her eyes. Truth be told, she was starting to get concerned; was she the only one here with some honest interest? It was starting to feel that way...The pit in her stomach grew a little heavier, as her work on the sphere began to progress in tandem with the feeling, unconsciously whipping out small tools and instruments to keep up the tuning process for...Whatever this thing was. She wasn't sure herself. It whirred every now and then, so that implied some kind of charge underneath the metal shell. Was it a grenade? Mm...Somehow, that didn't sit right. It wasn't that. Oh well! She had more time to work on it and puzzle at the use of it as someone new came in. Workshop could feel her smile return. This kid also seemed young, around the well-dressed guy's age, she'd bet. And he seemed [i]way[/i] more into it than the others! How could she not respond to all that enthusiasm? [color=f26522]"Howdy, Andrew! Nice to meetcha!"[/color] Her hope in the situation had swelled back with such a simple act, and she was all the happier for it. Why couldn't the others be like Hope here? Not only did he seem swell, but it felt like he was actually interested! Well, regardless, she was just happy to not be the only one here eager for the experience. Then, another gal showed up; shorter than Bev or Jane, though most of her figure was hidden under all the layers of clothing she wore, as if she sought to be absorbed into it. Can't say she blamed her for it though, it was [i]cold[/i] out there! Even with her jacket, she'd been shivering more often than not on her way to the PRT HQ. She watched as the newcomer shuffled her way to the side towards one of the terminals (and her mind briefly wandered to how angry Fukuda might be if she dismantled one) and placed an earbud in to listen to some tunes. Aw drat, was she one of the ones who weren't into this too? With how she distanced herself, Beverly certainly thought so...Until, right as she was about to turn away, she caught the fringes of a smile on the girl's face. She smiled too. As the Director slid over the earbuds, and quickly chucked them off to the stragglers, Bev obediently popped the case and put them in. She wasn't sure what he meant by 'not letting Gray Man pull anything on you', but she couldn't think of a reason to ignore the request. And truth be told, it caused her mind to run off on what it could mean, her gaze falling on Levin for a time. Some kind of auditory ability? Maybe with Master qualities, if it could 'pull something' on us? Ooh, it sounded interesting....But that was for another time! Following it up, Fukuda not-so-subtly requested for The Wards to make their introductions. And with how well Andy there had done his, well, Bev wasn't about to be out-done. Standing up from her seat, a broad smile graced the face of the Tinker as she addressed the room. [color=f26522]"Heya! M'name's Beverly Hillshire, though ya can call me Bev if ya want! Or when we get out there and start kickin' rears, I suppose I'll be Workshop. Nice to meet y'all!"[/color] She gazed around the room, eager to see the responses. Hopefully she hadn't tried too hard with it? Felt sincere to her, at least.... In spite of the amount of focus she put into her intro, behind her back, her hands were still idly finicking with her device, as if they had a mind of their own. Strangely enough, she caught a barely audible 'click' from the sphere. Puzzled, she broke her line-of-sight with the rest of them as she brought the sphere back to her attention. Needless to say, she wasn't prepared when it let out a spray of....Confetti? Now [i]that[/i] was new. Beverly found herself suppressed under a steady stream of blue and white strands of confetti, practically buried after the few seconds the device had been active. In the pile of paper scraps, a single hand managed to poke through with a thumbs up. [color=f26522]"....'M okay!"[/color] Could be heard muffled underneath. Inwardly, though, she might as well have been weeping. So much for first impressions...