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"You realize you're apt to whip my ass at this, right?", Amber chuckles, taking a swig from her beer. "Ain't never been too good at this game. A fact that my coworkers back in Oregon profited mightily from.", she snerks, shaking her head. "Schemin' bastards.", she chuckles, "But they was good company."
Julie has led Amber in, not before greeting the bouncer, who seems to know her pretty well, "Ay, Big Joe, howyadoin tonight, …this is, ah, Ember, she's from outta town." This seems to be enough explanation. She shrugs a little, indicating the pool tables. "Eh, if you're chasing boys the point ain't to win, anyway. Either way, I wouldn't cheat at it. I can't help but see all the English and topspin, and the rest, so that's enough anyway. This, though, except it's mostly mutants, is just a regular neighborhood place. That's what this city's really about. I mean, if you live here." She raises a hand as she gets closer to the bar. "Ay, Bill, how's about a couple of drafts and, well, a charming smile for a friend from somewheres out West."
Amber pauses for a moment just inside the bar to remove her Stetson and take a long, appraising look around the room. Evenin',sir.", she says to the man she assumes is Bill. "How's your world?", she inquires, mounting a barstool and setting her hat in her lap.
Julie hops up on the stool next to Amber. She appends, "Maybe way out west." 'Bill,' seems to be an older fellow of some patience, and perhaps careworn eyes Dizzy may try and cheer up. "A small one, after all," Diz suggests, and gets a chortle from Bill, who says, 'Dpn't treat me like an officer, lass, or I might pull rank.' Pints of Schaeefer are poured adroitly, though, and set out.
Bill *does* however, say something which seems to surprise Dizzy. "That Senator Williams just put the kibosh on his own registration act, though, no one knows what that's about." Dizzy takes up a pint and considers it. "I dunno, I'll toast his apparent sudden fit of not being some kind of Nazi, and many happy returns."
"Yeah, heard about that.", Amber drawls, taking a long, slow sip from her mug. "Wonder what that's all about. He was keen t' push it for'ard not too long ago, even had some support for it.", she notes, frowning a bit.
"Heh, amen to that.", she adds, toasting Dizzy. "Politicians….shit, who knows what goes on in their minds.", she scoffs. "Assumin' they've got 'em in th' first place.", she snerks.
Julie shrugs to Amber. "Eh, they ain't all the same. This is America. If you met Senator Reilly, well, he's been for all of us all along. This Williams guy, though, I dunno. Maybe he learned better, maybe he just realized New York ain't Alabama, even way upstate."
"Heh, I'll stick with Plutarch, I think.", Amber notes. "Abstain from beans.", she winks. "But, I am biased, problems with authority an' all.", she nods, taking another swig. "Ya know, this place reminds me of the place in Oregon.", she says. "Used t' lose not insignificant portions a' my paycheck at those pool tables."
Julie sips her beer, then takes out a pack of filtered cigarettes. Offers one over. "I got someone on me to give these things a chance. Got a light?" She winks.
Amber snerks. "The last thing in the world you wanna do is let my light your cigarette, Diz.", Amber chuckles, fishing out a pack of matches from her pocket. "Don't think Mr Bill here'd be too happy, me settin' you an' his bar alight.", she winks. "Gotta work on my focusin', 'least that's what the Professor says."
Julie nods, accepting the match-light. "I guess I never asked where you was with your gift, that way. She leans her head toward the pool table. "Anyway, these tables, well, don't bet if you ain't ready to lose, or win for that matter. Better you make friends than a few bucks."
"Ha! Sage advice, Dizzy, couple years too late, but sage advice.", Amber chuckles heartily. "Ain't never did much with reguards to my…y'know.", she shrugs. "Never had th' time, workin' an' all, y'know?", she adds. "Just kept tampin' it down, furth'r an' furth'r, didn't wanna set somebody alight by accident.", she notes. "Not exactly good for continued employment.", she winks.
Julie nods, a little, with a sympathetic shrug. Takes a long pull off her beer. "Yeah, it can take some doing, sometimes." She takes out an adjustable wrench she usuallly has in a back pocket, at least outside the mansion. Wags it a bit, and says, "Don't use these, but they, whattya call it, cover for a multitude of sins, just in case that's how they're calling you that."
"Eh? How they're callin' me, what?", Amber replies, brows going together. "Nobody ever called me much of anythin' when it comes to….", she says. "Never showed it to nobody if I could help it.", she shrugs. "As for the rest, ain't nobody ever called me nothin' wasn't at least half right.",she winks."Now, that is a /wrench/.", she grins. "You could disembowl a T-36 with that thing.", she chuckles.
Julie smirks a bit. "The funny thing is, I don't really need this, …but if I don't have something better on hand, it makes my 'magic touch' go down a lot easier if I got it in hand. Know what I mean?"
Amber snerks heartily! "Oh, I think I get your meanin.", she replies, nodding. "Wasn't me done it, was my magic wrench!", she giggles softly.
Julie laughs a bit. "Something like that. Besides, it's got paint from my first real ride on it. If that ain't magic, I dunno what is… I mean, except maybe some freaking magic. That's kind of a thing. Don't ask."
Julie is in the garage, welding glasses in place as she tacks something in place on what seems an improbably-large assortment of linkages and levers and threaded rods, while, perhaps predictably, rock music plays on the radio.
Forge arrives. He's one of those folks who uses this garage primarily to STORE his car, or at least park it while he's here. Rolling in his Galaxie convertible (as opposed to the Galaxie with wings and propellers), he stops the engine, and gets out, pulling his sportcoat back on as he does. "Good afternoon."
Julie glances up to the doors to staff-parking as she senses the big Ford mill pulling in, peeling back those goggles as Forge enters. "Heya, Mr. Forge, been a while. Howya doing?"
Forge tilts his head. "Really now? I guess we just haven't crossed paths the. It's a large property." Walking over slowly. "I'm alright thank you. Looks like your work never ends."
Julie shrugs a little. "I'd find some more if it did, I guess." She indicates her contraption. "Just got a bit of a job building something for a big guy. *Real* big guy, if you know what I mean. Gonna need a crazy shifter linkage, that's the tricky part."
Forge folds his arms, and comes around from behind Julie to see what she's working on. "A something. That's quite a something. What does ot do?"
Julie ahs. "Oh, it's just a big gearshift, just seeing if I can side-mount it and make the leverage so this big guy can drive it without it being between his knees or breaking something."
Forge shakes his head. "I feel like you're leaving a lot out. If you can't talk about, I'll stop asking," he says with a faint smile.
Julie winks. "I do custom work for some people like us, among others. When I say the guy's big, I mean it is all. Gonna build him something he can drive, you see. He don't really fit behind the wheel of regular stuff."
Forge nods. "Ah I see, so you're building a car, and this is one part of it. I see. Very interesting. Well, I was going to get something to eat now that I'm here, I can leave you be."
Julie ehs, eyeing her work. "I guess I could do to eat if you don't mind company. Any word from Uncle Sam on what you was looking into, by the way?"
Forge shrugs sightly. "By all means, join me," he offers, going to the door and holding it open to let her in. "Can't work all the time."
Julie nods, setting down a few things and flipping some switches. "I think they got hero sandwiches today, dunno if anyone earned em, yet. But it's still early. And hey, the Captain says that special project downstairs passed muster, so's we can use it now."
Forge chuckles. "Some people earn them just by continuing to try, day in and day out, while keeping their principles." Once she's in, he turns off the light, closes the door, and walks with her to the kitchen. "We'd both better wash up first."
Julie smirks, eyeing her hands, "Yeah, still smell like packing oil a bit." She indicates the sink over there, and eyes the covered luncheon trays as she heads that way, herself. "Well, probably sadwiches, anyway. Pretty sporadic lunch crowd this time of year."
Forge nods. "Summer and all that. But if you're worried about smell, just use more soap," he says flatly. Taking one side of the sink for himself, leaving her the other, he gets to washing his hands and his face after the long drive. "I suppose your customer isn't someone here, since you're being so secretive."
Julie shakes her head. "Real nice guy, though. I'll introduce you if we run across him. I guess I'm just not in the habit of spilling stuff without asking, and it never came up to ask." She glances over. "Maybe you could join in, though, not that I really get your sense of engineering."
Forge laughs as he washes thoroughly, then starts rinsing as thoroughly before drying. "I won't ask. My business is secrets. I'm sure you have your reasons." Once dry. "I don't really have a sense of engineering though, thank you anyway. Any engineering I do is after the fact, more like reverse engineering."
Julie ahs, drying off her hands, and laughs a bit. "Well, it ain't like it's state secrets, sometimes it's just, you know, like celebrities and rich people, got enough people knocking on their doors as it is."
Forge chuckles. "Secrets are secrets, not just to the State. That's why we have the Fourth Amendment, after all. Now let's see what kind of sandwich material we have. I could go for most any kind of meat today."
Julie nods. "Well, I made pretty sure we got a good salami and a couple other things. I pull some duty with the store runs now and again, kinda gotta get my driving time in anyway."
Forge grabs a roll and cuts it open, digging out a little room. Then starts loading on the salami for starters. "Driving time? Huh. You spend most of your time here, right."
Julie shrugs. "Oh, it kinda depends. Sometimes I'm in town more, had a few things to do there, mi familia to help out, stuff like that," she says, splitting a roll open for herself, as well. "Just, sometimes I gotta drive. Sorta helps keep my stuff under wraps. Besides, I wouldn't need engines if I didn't love em, not really. Four wheels, some wind, dunno how you'd call it living without that sometimes."
Forge nods slowly. "I see, so it's not arequirement, so much as it is a hobby." He finds some other meats to get into the sandwich, getting some variety before he sticks the whole thing briefly into the oven to toast it. "I misunderstood."
Julie shrugs. "Helps keep my, ah, stuff under control, actually. Sometimes it's pretty required, I guess. Been getting better that way, though. It's kinda hard to explain, really. I kinda got a sense no one's really got a word for."