Factor Industries Charity Event: October 18th, 2016

[ceofactor]

Even for Benjamin Factor, arranging this charity event had been something of a challenge. Just as he held great influence in Gateway City, Thunder Corp's influence in Locke was great as well. But with time and money, all things were indeed possible in this case, and the Memorial Dance Hall was playing host to the night's events. It was a glamorous affair: politicians, captains of business, dignitaries, and celebrities had been invited. For whatever controversy that existed, the world legitimately wanted to heal the wounds left by the invasion, and that meant there were a lot of people who wanted to use events like this to either advance that cause, or to make themselves look good.

But they weren't the only sorts of individuals who had recieved an invitation.

Benjamin Factor had also made it so the Numbered would be invited to his little party. Arrivals through the teleporter would be greeted by drivers at the community center, and the same courtesy was extended to anyone who might live in Locke. The only stipulation? Was that anyone who came make an effort to make themselves presentable. If that was a problem, or anyone arrived without knowing, they had clothes on hand for people to change into.

Indeed, it seemed that the Numbered would be well provided for tonight. That being said, their presence would get people to talk, given the presence of news crews making live coverage. Nevertheless... "getting people to talk" seemed to be exactly what Benjamin Factor wanted to happen.

[Event Links: Event Speakers | NPC Interaction | General Mingle]

Comments

Toushirou Hitsugaya | Open

[icy_heavens]

Toushirou has partly come here because of Phillip's insistence, but that isn't all there is to it.

Honestly, he misses home sometimes, and to have more than homesickness as an excuse to return is nice. He'd been concerned about the trouble here, but sure as hell hadn't been going to come back under Thundercorp's banner. He feels especially vindicated after hearing people speaking up on the network about how they really haven't changed. Figures.

He's dressed nicely enough, though someone his apparent age looks a little out of place at a fancy party regardless. Whatever. It's not like he isn't used to getting odd glances. He carries himself well, clearly not intimidated by being almost the youngest (and indisputably the smallest) person in the room. He pokes at the food a little, his gaze instinctively sweeps around the room periodically, searching for anything that might be amiss. There's been a long history of things going awry when a lot of Numbered gather and even if it hasn't been as much the case lately, old habits are hard to break. He doesn't have Hyourinmaru in the building with him, obviously, but the sword is safely stowed somewhere nearby and with his speed, he can get to it within seconds.

But, at least for now, it's just a party, right? He can do that.

[jasminebloominginshadow]

You never forget people you've fought alongside before, especially not when you helped them steal important, top secret technologies. So when Jasmine sees Toushirou, her face lights up pretty quickly.

"Toushirou!" she exclaimed as she walked towards him. "It's been a long time...!"

[icy_heavens]

It's hard to believe that was so long ago, boosting Project Jump from Thundercorp. They'd done pretty well there, even if they'd had to scramble to find a place for the thing afterward. Toushirou really doesn't look much different than then, despite the passage of time. A bit shorter than then, but that's about it. Much to his private annoyance.

"Hey, Jasmine." Said with much less enthusiasm, because what is enthusiasm, even? But he at least doesn't sound bored, either. "Yeah, I guess it has."

[jasminebloominginshadow]

At this point, Jasmine has gotten used to Toshirou's demeanor. As such, she takes it in stride.

"How have you been? I don't think we've talked in a while, even on the network."

[icy_heavens]

It's so much easier when people do that. Toushirou is a good kid at the heart of it, but he takes a little getting used to.

"Been alright, I guess. You know, aside from the occasional crap that's gone on lately."

Call him crazy, but he's pretty sure it's going to escalate. Just hopefully not tonight. That would be pretty annoying.

[jasminebloominginshadow]

Jasmine sighed, and nodded. "You're telling me," she said. "I don't know if you saw on the Network, but I suddenly got several dozen mouths to feed. Then there's all the stuff that's been popping up, and Thunder Corp..."

She took a deep breath, and eased up, however. "But I dunno. I'm happy to just... relax, tonight."

[darkhourdear]

Phillip is very grateful that his friend came along with him- he isn't entirely sure Toushirou would or wouldn't have come on his own, but the moral support (especially upon getting an Echo as soon as they entered the city- that had been a cause for alarm) was definitely needed.

So, after his speech is done, he'll wander over through the crowd to find him. "Hey!"

[icy_heavens]

It's debatable whether he would have come. He misses Locke, but events like this have never exactly been his thing. Maybe he would have been here anyway. Maybe not.

He's snacking when Phillip finds him, but not on anything sweet or sugary. They're in public, after all; the disparity between his real age and his physical age are just making him dig his heels in more on this particular petty topic. "Hey. You did okay up there."

Faint praise, maybe. But that much from Toushirou is something nonetheless and Phillip will know it.

[darkhourdear]

It might not sound like a lot to most people, but it makes Phillip beam happily. Minor praise is all one can ever expect from Toushirou, so he will be happy with what he gets. "Thanks!" he says cheerfully, and since they're in public he knows better than to try and get Toushirou to admit to liking sweet things but that doesn't stop him from getting a cookie. "Everything been ok so far?"

[icy_heavens]

He's going to look like this for at least a couple centuries and he's well aware of it. If the time to separate himself from childish things hadn't come before, it's certainly come now. Or something. It makes sense in his head, okay.

"I guess, as far as parties go. No sign of everything going to hell."

The 'yet' is kind of an unspoken thing. It doesn't really do to get too comfortable when a lot of them gather like this.

[peacefulwinter]

A big social function like this... she's gotten better with time and association to a popular writer, but a part of Winter is certain she'll never get used to this kind of formal stuff. So she's milling around, talking to anyone that'll give her an ear, but she's still a little bit reserved as she roams. Until she catches Toushirou, looking for all the world like the VIP's kid that hangs out at big to-dos because their parents make them, and she grins, making a beeline in his direction. She'd switched up to a proper, fancy dress for once, a deeper shade of blue than the icy color she's associated with these days but still elegant - better to go all in on something like this, right?

"Toushirou! It feels like forever since I saw you last. Enjoying the party?" She specifically does not use words like fun or a good time. The kid being who he is, she's not sure he lets himself add those words to his dictionary when there are more than a couple people involved.

[icy_heavens]

No, those words don't get anywhere near something like this. Especially when this wouldn't even fall under the umbrella of actually being those things and him just denying it. Still, his expression softens marginally when Winter approaches.

"Eh, it's okay, I guess." He's had worse times, but he can't really say he's enjoying it. He might be a serious kid, but even he has limits as to how much stuffiness he can tolerate. "You?"

[peacefulwinter]

It's okay? That's a positive assessment from him, which earns him a small chuckle. "Well, you're not too unhappy, so I guess it works out. I can't complain - I get to run my mouth a lot to people that are actually listening to me, I get tasty snacks, I get to keep an eye on my wife to make sure she doesn't get into trouble, and I can see friends I haven't seen in a while. I'm pretty okay with this, honestly." She's got a certain kind of energy from all of those things added together that's almost visible.

[icy_heavens]

Positive, but only marginally. It still counts, though. And yes, he can just about see the energy about her. It's nice; she used to get way too flustered and hand-wringing over silly things before. Granted, that's part of how they'd been able to become friends; he has the tendency to tone down his bratty behaviour for timid girls. Upsetting them just makes somebody an asshole.

But she's more sure of herself now, and as her friend, he's glad to see it. Even if he probably wouldn't directly say so.

"Well, it's working out so far, then." He can't quite help the 'so far' in there.

[prismaticdestruction]

And not too long into things, He will get someone who at least is remembering her party manners for the moment-

"Is this seat taken or do I need to go find another to pull up?"

[icy_heavens]

Toushirou really isn't one to worry much about party manners. Or possibly not even know what all of them are at something catering to the wealthiest elite. Either way, he wouldn't have batted an eye if Dani had just sat down.

"It's fine. Go ahead."

[prismaticdestruction]

They are kind of ingrained into her so at least for a bit, Dani's a proper child here....other then the fact she's wearing a hoodie over her dress. She sits down and glances around for a moment before speaking again.

"Kinda boring here...almost as if something is going to happen or it's just meant for the adults to talk like they know things."

[icy_heavens]

Toushirou may not be fashion conscious, but he can see how the hoodie looks out of place here. He doesn't care, but he can see it.

A quiet little huff. "Well we're here, so we definitely can't count out the first one. But it could really be just for adults. Aside from Phillip, who got invited here to give a speech, we're pretty much the only kids around."

[witnessme]

Nux is a vision of misery tonight, flitting around and trying not to draw attention to a mouth that, as one tactful individual had put it, looks like it lost a fight with a lawn mower. Though he's not a vain young man by any means, he has grown comfortable with his appearance since getting back a more human one, and there's something incredibly disconcerting about having surprise autonomy stolen from him.

"Where are your parents?" he mumbles unhappily, seeing a white-haired young man who is not the one he likes to rope into torturous workouts. "Aren't you young to be here by yourself? Or something? You could get kidnapped."

[icy_heavens]

No, not the one he likes to rope into torturous workouts, but ironically one who would be able to handle them.

He scowls a little at the questioning. He's had to field a few inquiries similar to this over the course of the night, and they're starting to get annoying. Well. More annoying.

"I'm fourteen." He doesn't look fourteen. He knows he doesn't look fourteen. It doesn't change facts. And evidently that's old enough to be here by himself because why not? "And I'm not going to get kidnapped."

He fought on the front lines during the damn invasion, nobody is kidnapping him.

[witnessme]

Someday, Nux will find a person who can keep up with his muscle tone and lung capacity. Until then, poor Nathan will have to endure as much as his reluctance to say no can take.

"Fourteen? Uh... don't know where you live, but I think that's still a little young to be in Locke City by yourself," he says with a slight frown. The kid seems unusually mature for his age, to the point where Nux doesn't feel as much like an adult with any kind of authority and more like a slightly older kid who thinks he should have it but ultimately isn't sure.

"...are... are you sure you're really fourteen?"

[icy_heavens]

Toushirou tends to have that effect on people. To the point where his own friends call him if they feel like they need an adult.

"Maybe I know how to handle myself on my own." That much is delivered with the same vaguely annoyed tone. But the next question makes him scowl harder and the annoyance becomes that much more pronounced. "I think I know my own age."

[agentthompson]

If anything sticks out in the middle of a party like this, it's an unaccompanied minor. A big CEO like Benjamin Factor doesn't just invite kids to functions this big for any given reason. As such, it's not hard to at least take a stab at the reasons for most people. Maybe a little bit more, if you have information on them.

Of course, the information Tobias does have in this case is more than a little out of date. So, intelligence is a necessity.

Even if he's got to throw himself on his own sword to get it.

As such, Toushirou will find the man coming up near at one point, appearing more or less casually friendly, if a little bit concerned.

"Hey, man - you got your parents around here anywhere?"

Of course, he already realizes the folly of what he's saying. But, well. That's sort of the point.

[icy_heavens]

Toushirou has no delusion that he doesn't stick out here. He, Phillip, and Dani are really the only younger kids around. Phillip had been invited to speak, and Dani has her sister with her, so he's been the one getting the brunt of the questions about his presence.

That doesn't mean he isn't tired of it.

An exasperated sigh. "No, but my grandmother is perfectly aware of where I am."

Grandmother. Not parents. He hasn't had any parents since he was four.

[agentthompson]

Grandmother. Tobias made a note of that.

"I see," he said. "She'll probably be worried about you if you're gone too long, though. Lot of... interesting characters here tonight."

His intonation would make it obvious he was talking about the Numbered, though his tone remained friendly. He wanted to see how Toushirou reacted.