Rule of 3 [Hellbreaker/invite]

Yup, it was still snowing. Ally couldn't be completely sure but it seemed like it had been coming down more lately. With the snow, business at the gym had slowed down quite a bit. Most would chalk this up to it being too cold to want to work out and get sweaty before going back out into it. Ally was not one of these people. She loved the cold more than she liked it hot, for the simple reason that she enjoyed the pins and needles of the cold. Plus it was highly unlikely that SHE'D get sick- in her mind. But the gym had regardless cut hours, which she more than made up for with being hired out as a personal trainer. The only recent matter of excitement was with Diana her younger sister, and a motley crew of associates raiding STAR Labs. It kind of became a blur but it helped get DOMA out, which was what Diana wanted. And Ally wanted to help, and also let off some steam. So everyone won! Except DOMA- but from what little she paid attention to local politics, they had it coming.

So afterwards her first thought was naturally to try and celebrate with her weird family. Diana was more available with the "free time" she said she earned with DOMA gone. But Charlotte, their eldest sister had been quite busy as of late with her duties as mayor. But the planets seemed to align and they were to meet up at Diana's place, since she didn't want someone to recognize Charlotte. Probably wouldn't go over well for the local mayor to be parading around with nobodies. Diana was still ever paranoid. Atleast it was nicer than Charlotte saying she wouldn't set foot in Ally's tiny little apartment until it was clean. It was clean! She, Rae and Taz worked really hard to keep it looking nice!

She hadn't been up to Uptown very much. It was the nicer looking parts of town and also mostly residential for the well off. Needless to say, Ally felt out of place here as they arrived. Ally paid the Uber driver and got a number at the same time before they drove off. "Well here we are. I think... it looks... more modest than I was expecting. Then again this is the first time I've been over since she got a place in town," Ally remarked offhandedly walking up to the gate. It was the only indication that someone affluent lived here, though that was totally because it was the cheapest Diana could find that met her criteria of "away from people."

"Ello, how’s the craic?" A femmine, Irish accented voice asked from a little guard station to the side of the gate. An amazon built woman with blonde hair and a pair of cybernetic arms poked out of the window and fixed her eyes on Ally.

"The wha? OH! Roxy! HI!" Ally jerked from the sudden Irish before brightening up. Of course she knew Roxanna, she met her at Diana's night club.

"Go away out of tha'," Roxy smiled widely. "You 'ere ta have a gas at boss' gaff eh? Any stir?" Roxanna asked curiously. Ally simply offered a nod as she was further confused by the dialect.

"I thought you worked at the club," Ally asked curiously..

"Ah, ye. Bout tha. Onna tha otha bouncers got scunnered workin' with me. Real Ballbeg tha' one. And tha's tha's. Now tha yer here tho, I'mma get real lonely now," Roxanna replied with a frown, noticing Ally had company with her. "Who's this then?" Roxanna questioned.

"Taz, Roxxy, Roxy Taz. He was free to come along," Ally introduced them.

Taz sat beside Ally inside the Uber, peering out at the passing cityscape and drifting snow as the vehicle carried the pair towards their destination.  As the buildings turned from stores and apartments into moderately fancier houses, the boy tilted his head,curiously. He hadn't had much reason to wander around this part of the city, so it was somewhat new to him. He had to admit, he felt a bit out of place as well.  Still, they had to be getting closer as well, which meant he'd be meeting Ally's sisters soon! Though he was certainly looking forward to it, Taz had to admit he was a little nervous as well.

Though having Ally and Rae to count on meant that he wasn't quite as jumpy around strangers as he used to be, so long as they were near, he was still a little hesitant around folks he hadn't quite gotten to known. Though, considering that they were Ally's sisters, they had to be nice as well! As they arrived, Taz turned to give his roommate and guardian a smile, hopping out and standing beside her.

 Waving goodbye at the driver as the Uber drove off, Taz followed Ally, sticking  close to the young woman as they approached the gate. Glancing up at Ally as she made a offhanded remark, the young halfing gave a curious, chirping hum. As the guard greeted them, Taz couldn't help but tilt his head curiously at her dialect, (and, he had to admit, he was a little curious about the armor she wore over her arms.) Watching the two adults interact, he gave a blink as Roxy seemed to notice him. Scooching a little more closely to Ally's side and giving a wave as she introduced the pair to each other, Taz nodded and looking up at Roxy, giving her a small, somewhat shy smile. "Hello. It's nice to meet you, Miss Roxy."

"Dun he soun' like ah angel. Well, shouldn' keep ya. But iffa ya can, save me a bottle o' tha black stuff will ya hun?" Roxxy replied warmly, and Ally knew she was talking about Whiskey- Guinness to be exact. She doubted her sister had any alcohol with being a minor and everything, and she didn't think Annie would be much of a drinker anyway.

"I'll see if she has any laying around," Ally offered sincerely as Roxanne pushed the button to open the gate, letting them in. There were some of those masked critters in the yard, evidently making a snowman- but otherwise were keeping their distance from the house. Ally briefly pondered whether or not to tell Roxanna as they looked their way. They just stared... "menacingly." In hindsight, she probably knew about it.

So she rung the doorbell and after a moment or two it opened to... an unexpected figure. "Are... you a ghost?" Ally bluntly asked the black... cartoonish looking masked ghost. One could also describe it as a pokemon named Dusclops. It's mask eyeholes blinked and it made a Spooky Steve Sound, beckoning them inside before closing the door behind them.

"Who's that? Ally is that you?" A familiar voice called from deeper in. The Spooky Steve would offer to take their coats.

"Yeah it's me, and I brought Taz!" Ally called back, handing the Spooky Steve her coat and watching it struggle under the weight of coats. It was probably fine.... probably. Ally would lead the way into the living room, noting how... characteristically spartan it looked aside from the massive big screen tv, and expensive game ssytem.

Sitting on either end of the couch was her eldest sister, Charlotte- for anyone in the know, was currently the mayor of the city now. And on the other was their baby sister, who was as you can imagine, playing some kind of video game. "Ah, so this is one of the little ragamuffins you were talking about," Charlotte remarked, smiling at them.

"Don't touch anything not yours..." Diana said curtly, not pausing her game.

"Then how's he supposed to sit down Annie? Also- is there booze or food?" Ally countered before becoming distracted with more important things. As if on cue, a plate of food seemed to float over to her. Was it the Spooky Steve? No. It was just a Sneaky Steve, as he faded into view. "Also- when did you get butlers?" Ally asked taking the whole plate and sitting somewhere between her sisters. "Don't mind her Taz, make yourself at home. Just don't break anything- I'm not loaded enough to pay for it," Ally added playfully.

"Some of these are mine- they're everywhere in this snowstorm and I've decided to put them to use. Besides- they don't seem to ask for anything in return, and they love me~" Charlotte spoke up as more little Steves seemed to trying to one up eachother for her affection.

"The rule applies to them in particular," Diana chimed in as her Spooky Steve carefully appeared and started laying out more snackfood, Diana stealing an entire thing of dr. pepper for herself.

"I can't believe you drink that swig Diana. Anyway! Taz was it? How're you doing sweetheart? I hear you've been helping Ally keep her house slightly more tolerable than it used to be," Charlotte said turning her attention back to Taz. Diana shot her a glare at insulting her Dr. Pepper. The Spooky Steve seemed to be waiting for something expectantly and timidly, to which Diana scooted alittle and allowed it to snuggle up on the couch next to her. A rare sight indeed.

Taz ducked his head shyly at Roxxy's warm comment about him, but couldn't help but tilt his head as she asked Ally to save her a 'bottle of the black stuff.' Did she mean soda? He wondered what kind she liked. As the gaurdswoman opened the gate, the young halfling followed Ally in, waving goodbye to Roxxy and giving her another small smile as they started walking towards the house.

Noticing the small Masked Ones, Taz gave a soft, light chuckle at noticing they'd been building a snowman. Noticing that the strange beings were staring at them, he gave a slightly hesitant but friendly wave in greeting as the two walked up to the door. As someone opened it after Ally ringing the doorbell, Taz gave a chirping hum of confusion and surprise and tilting his head upon seeing who it was. A...a Dusclops? He gave a small wave hello, stepping slightly closer to Ally. As she asked if it was a ghost, he blinked, glancing up at her and then back down to the Spooky Steve, head tilting curiously.  

Stepping forward with Ally as the Steve beckoned them in, he blinked as it offered to take their coats. "Oh! Thank you." As Ally handed hers over, he took off his and lay it over the other one. Noticing the trouble the poor Steve seemed to be having, Taz blinked, then fidgeted. He kinda wanted to help... Glancing up at her as Ally started leading the way again, the boy glanced back at the Steve then her again, biting his lip, before giving the Steve a small, quick bow and thanked it again before quickstepping after his guardian.

Hiding slightly behind Ally as he followed her into the living room, Taz peeked around her. Noticing the tech, his eyes widened in slight awe, but he quickly turned his attention to the two women sitting on the couch. As one of them greeted them, he gave a small, shy smile back. Was this Charlotte? He'd heard about how she'd become the Mayor,(which was kinda like an Elder Speaker?) Ally had been so proud when she'd gushed at them about it. Taz would probably be trying to hide behind her even more, feeling even shyer in front of such a important person, but he did have to be Polite and she seemed nice, anyway. Interlacing his hands infront of him, he gave the pair a respectful bow in greeting before stepping close to Ally again. "I-It's nice to meet you both."

As Diana spoke up curtly, the boy would blink, then nod hesitantly. "Ye-yes, ma'am." She seemed stern...Hopefully he wouldn't annoy her too much. As Ally gave him a playful reassurance, Taz would relax slightly, smiling up at his guardian as he hopped up beside her on the couch and promised, "I won't."

Blinking upon noticing what at first seemed to be a floating plate, then the Steve underneath it, the young halfling tilted his head curiously. Noticing the other Steves' antics, he'd give a soft chuckle, only to glance up at Charlotte as she addressed him. He'd respond, nodding,giving a small, shy smile. "I've been doing well, Miss Charlotte. And yep! I've been helping some." His smile seemed a little proud at the last bit. It was the least he could do after she took him in, after all, and he liked helping. Though, he had to admit, he liked helping cook a bit more, (especially if it meant he got to snag some tasty treats while doing so.) He'd reach forward to snag a few treats of his own, though glancing up at Ally as if to ask if it was ok first, then glanced back up at Charlotte. "Are you doing well, Miss Charlotte?"

Ally was already stuffing her face, which definitely should've been all the incentive he needed. Steves continued doing Steve things in the background. "That's grand, and I'm doing better now that I have some time away from the office. If there weren't more perks to being the mayor, I'd have never taken the chance. Plus now I don't need to worry about DOMA or their impact on my city," Charlotte replied bluntly, holding a hand out toward the Steves who seemed to scramble back in the kitchen, only to come back real quick with a bottle of wine. Ally's head almost snapped off she looked at it so quick.

"Ooh! So there is booze~" Ally suppressed a burp as the Sneaky Steve reappeared with another tray, this time with actual food and not appetizers.

"Now Ally, this isn't Sol's. I'm generous enough to break out something from my collection for the occasion. But I don't want you to down the entire bottle on your own," Charlotte said sternly.

"Unless it's whiskey, I may as well be drinking water then," Ally quipped.

"Tap water saves me money, then," Diana chimed in, only pausing her game to take a drink from hter dr. pepper. Yes, she planned on having that entire thing to herself. Fortunately some of The Steves had brought in some other sodas.

"No wait- I knew I should've stopped by Sol's. He didn't want to join us? I was kind of expecting Danny would want to see us again atleast," Ally asked about Sol and Daniella.

"Busy," Diana said simply, finally looking at Taz for the first time tonight. Just one of her usual, piercing stares.

"The invitation was extended.I miss Danny too- if I had the time, I'd love to indulge her curiosity in the art of magic. Speaking of- Diana, that request of yours? He says he'd love to once he finds time. Father apparently has had him especially busy with something and he's nearing a breakthrough," Charlotte added, relaying the message from one of their family friends. Diana merely nodded, going back to her game.

"So what do you even do besides clean and cook for my sister?" It took Ally a moment to realize she was talking about Tax and gave her a look at the bluntness.

Reassured by Ally's own enjoyment of her treats, Taz got some for himself. Listening to Charlotte as she answered his question, the boy nodded in agreement with her statement about DOMA. "They were too hunt hungry." He gave a small smile. "But it is good that you can retrieve some..." Taz paused, head tilting thoughtfully. "R&R? Am I using that well? I hope you can have more rest."

Giving a soft laugh at the sisters' bantering, Taz got himself a plate with some actual food on it, (eagerly following that up by getting some root beer soda once he noticed that it was there), before settling back into place and listening to the adults talk. His brows furrowed slightly upon hearing that two others couldn't make it. That was too bad...It'd have been nice to interact with them as well. He got it, though, and surely they'd all be able to meet up again sometime!

Noticing that Diana was staring at him, the young halfling blinked, then gave the youngest sister a small wave in return. Perking up as Charlotte mentioned magic, he looked up at her. She was a magic user? That was so cool! He wondered what kind of magic she used. Maybe it was similar to his? Glancing back and forth between the two as a message was exchanged, Taz's head tilted slightly in curiosity.

As Diana bluntly asked what else he did, Taz blinked, then gave a thoughtful hum. "Hmm... Well, I like cartoons. I also help get food and other stuff, and help the ....neighbors?" He paused, seeming to consider if that was the right word before nodding and continuing with a slightly sheepish smile. "I help the neighbors sometime, and like running across Jump." Taz gave a small grin as he finished his answer. "I also like arcades and video games!"

Diana wasn't exactly... thrilled by the notion that he helped their neighbors- both because it was knowing Ally personally, for free and that went against her capitalist creed. It aslo gave people a face to see, and she was still paranoid enough to think that this entire situation was not going to end well for Ally- and that meant it'd end up badly for all of them by extension if they could link her to them at all. And then immediately that all subsided with the simple admission of video games. Silently telling her Spooky Steve to grab an extra controller, it floated off the couch and sank into the floor. Popping back up by the game system, it picked up a second controller and repeated the process. Offering the controller to Taz. "Heehee, you said the magic words. I still don't know why people waste their times with such things. But everyone has their vices I guess," Charlotte remarked with a swig of wine.

"Is this the one I think it is? The one with the flshy special moves and partner tag in thing? I've been meaning to get this one but keep forgetting," Ally commented with a mouthful of sandwich, much to Chalotte's dismay.

The Steves now seemed to be distracted with something else, having set up what could only be described as a gambler's table and whiteboard. Who was going to win was up on the whiteboard, which overall looked like total gibberish and the only way you'd know who was who was from the crudely Steved drawings of Taz and Diana's face. The wagers were done in Jelly Beans of all things...

Taz blinked as the Spooky Steve popped up infront of him, offering a controller.The young halfling tilted his head, then perked up as he realized that Diana was going to let him play with her. Glancing up at Charlotte, Taz nodded in agreement, giving a small, happy grin. He looked forward to it! It'd be nice to play with Miss Diana, and maybe they could become friends! Looking back at the Spooky Steve, he accepted the controller, thanking the masked critter, before turning his attention to Diana. Giving her a slightly shy smile,Taz spoke up. "Thank you for letting me play with you,Miss Diana."

As Ally made her comment,he looked up,smiling. "Really? That sounds fun!" He couldn't wait to see what it was like! And if they got it, maybe they could all play it back at home too. That'd be nice. Noticing what the Steves were doing, the boy tilted his head. Were they...betting on Miss Diana and him? With Jelly Beans? He gave a chuckle at their antics, then turned his attention to the tv. He was ready to Game!

The Spooky Steve would then float up, sort of watching from above them while The Steves started their totally legitimate game of guessing. "I do wish Sol was here- atleast I'd have someone else to entertain me during these video games," Charlotte feigned boredom but was watching out of the corner of her eye.

"Bored because you're bad at them," Diana said curtly as she set up the first round, picking a young looking vampiress and a girl wielding a gun scythe.

"Try not to keep him in the corner all game- that's never fun," Ally mentioned with a sip of soda.

"If he's good, he won't be there for long..." Diana said matter of factly as the game was afoot!

Taz bounced slightly in his seat as Diana started setting the game up. As the screen flickered into life, he  gave a excited grin, his canines now seeming almost a little too long to any that payed close enough attention. Granted, he wasn't quite sure if he'd manage to win, being that Miss Diana probably knew this game much better than him, but it was still sure to be fun! First though, he had to pick his characters. Gazing at the screen, the boy gave a thoughtful hum. He didn't know this game yet, so he should probably just pick two that seemed cool and get on with it. Taz could get a feel for the gameplay while he was playing,after all.

Settling upon a pair, he picked a hooded cat wielding a large katana and a girl with massive gauntlets. As Ally and Diana spoke to eachother,Taz looked up at the pair. Giving a smile, he nodded. "I'll do my best!"

And then the game began.It was soon evident that Diana was skilled, very much so. Taz's eyes widened slightly as he was confronted by a battlefield littered with traps. 'Woah! It's like a net....Let's see if I can get through!' Grinning happily, he tried to close in on his opponent with the cat.

"Why is there a cat wearing a hoodie and using swords? Further, how is this little girl able to hold up those massive gauntlets?" Charlotte questioned in disbelief, she didn't get most of these games her sisters played. She had restrained her questioning about there being a literal tank in the game.

"Hey, Charlie's in the game!" Ally said referring to the pink haired witch character.

"She's married to the cat apparently," Diana commented off handedly.

"W-what?" Charlotte blinked, glaring daggers at both of her sisters in turn at the insinuation. "Also, don't call me that," she added to Ally.

Diana would be the only to notice the canines, Ally had already seen them atleast once before- since Taz lived with her. As interesting as that would be, she had other things on her mind; like crushing her opponent. Traps were just part of her strategy, the other one was the mobility of her characters. She knew enough about the cat and loli with gauntlets to play hit and run. Everyone had a specific strategy, a rhythm. Once someone figured that out, all you had to do was play against that with a few odd moves thrown in to keep them on their toes. Needless to say, Diana played cautiously- but if she ever caught Taz off guard, she went in without hesitation.

The Steves in the background would be making excited Steve noises when the game went as they anticipated- unfortunately gambling lost it's meaning if everyone bet on the same person. Too bad none of them knew how to actually gamble."C'mon Taz- don't forget you can push her back while guarding," Ally cheered Taz on, possibly getting too into the game- or Taz' own excitement was contagious.

Taz smiled at the sisterly banter, but focused his attention on the screen. It was evident to him that  Diana had the advantage when it came to skill and experience, which was fine! It was to be expected, and if he tried his best he could at least not come out of this completely stomped. The young shockslinger's own strategy was a little rough due to him not knowing his characters or the game all that well, but he seemed to have clued in to the fact that his characters had decent agility, and was taking advantage of that. It was, admittedly, not working as well as he had hoped, for his opponent was playing cautiously enough that he had trouble getting any combos in.

Wincing slightly as Diana saw a opportunity, Taz gave a amused, if slightly rueful, grin upon hearing the Steves. Trying to recover from Diana's attack, he perked up as Ally cheered him on. He could? That sounded cool! Further excited and reassured by his guardian's cheering, he took a quick second to grin happily up at her. "Thank you!" Attempting to go back on the offensive, Taz would try to do what Ally recommended if Diana attacked him.

While intended to be helpful, it unfortunately also tipped Diana off to be expecting it. But she did still have to try and attack eventually. With two characters with projectiles, she could do this safely as she mentally tallied the number of his gauge, built up hers by making use of her vampire loli's projectile field traps, and the first chance she got she went for a grab instead- which got around guards. The game had a lot of rock paper scissors going on mechanically, but some things still made less sense.

The Steves would start to cheer, a couple at least changed their votes as it turned out Taz was not utterly stomped like they assumed. "This is... absurd," Charlotte said watching what was clearly a superior player going up against someone who just hadn't learned their characters or all the finer details of the game. It just looked incredibly stressful and confusing but she wouldn't admit that.

"Careful- if you try to countergrab I think you negate hers," Ally said with some degree of confidence- that's how it worked in other games anyway. If a guard countered attacks, grabs countered guards, then guards countered guards... for some reason. Hitting them faster than the grab also worked but that was a given.

Diana meanwhile was hyper focused, trying to block out the chatter of her sisters while only slightly getting irritated that she hadn't ended this as quickly as she had been expecting. If she had been more aggressive maybe this would've been over already, one way or the other. But it was too late to be worrying about what she could've done.

Taz hummed thoughtfully as his eyes tracked the pixels dancing across the screen. She was still being careful about getting too close...He probably won't be able to make use of Ally's tip just yet. And it was hard getting through these projectiles! Giving a surprised yelp as Diana goes in for a grab, Taz winces as she takes more health off. That one had stung...He had to be careful. One more combo was likely to take at least one of his fighters away from him, and then it was open season!

Smiling at the Steves' cheering, the boy nodded ruefully upon hearing Charlotte's statement. As the match went on, it became even more evident that he wasn't likely to win it. That said, Taz could at least go down with a bit of honor, and for that he had to focus!

Eyes narrowing as he tries to do exactly that, Taz does hear Ally's tip. Though he was a little too locked onto the screen to smile up at her again, the young halfing does smile happily at the continued support and tips, and he leaned sideways slightly to give her a grateful nudge with his shoulder before trying to blitz Diana.If he got close enough, Taz would try to unleash a grab of his own with the gauntlet weilding girl.

This would however be met with a well timed partner assist, bringing in her vampire loli to trigger a trap she had left for just in case- regardless of whether or not he was aiming to grab her, she always tried to keep one around to discourage him from getting close to her. So when he got to close, the trap AND lil vampiress would release a vertical bolt of electricity. Diana would follow that up with a dreaded combo. Starting it off with her gunscythe user before switching control over to her vampiress while she was tagged in, gliding away afterwards to avoid quick reprisal.

Some Steves made sad Steve sounds.