louis the inventor king

closed with the hmml

[stutteringschemer]

Seasonally appropriate in multiple ways, as well!

[bowtiedbaker]

errand boy (Louis/Carl)

[bowtiedbaker]

Hmhm– I guess so! I don’t imagine you visit much or else I’d’ve met you before now, hm?♪ [Smiles wide, tilting his head briefly.] But I guess then I won’t be seeing you much later either– I bet I could be enough conversation you’d never have to talk to Duke anyways, hmhm–

[Gently offers the spool of wire between his fingers as though he’s still unsure - until the other man at least takes it, and– well, er, he supposes in a moment that it must have been the correct thing, since a thanks is much different than a correction. Delayed, finally responds a jolted:]

Oh–! Right, yes, no problem, hmhm–! Hm– [Blinks, watching him attach the wires with a slight rise of anxiety. Goodness, he supposed it would be a bit late to say something now, he definitely hoped that was a right thing. I mean, what else could an insulated wire be, right? He hadn’t suggested a specific type more than that–]

Hn– [Smiles awkwardly, crossing his fingers high in show.] Goodness, if it works I’m gonna owe you bunches, you know!♪ Should we let it cool off first, or–? [Blinks, biting his lip for a moment before leaning forward, shifting the goggles on his face as he tries to see what the other man had done.] I, ah– I’ve never done this before, actually– it’s my first time, hmhm–♪

[stutteringschemer]

It’ll have to cool before the back plate goes back on, absolutely— and before we test it, as well— [He’s half distracted as he works, tongue pressed between his lips as he solders the ends of the wire into place. First one side, then the other, and Louis sits back at last, switching off the soldering gun with a triumphant grin. Then replays the last thing Carl had said in his mind.]

Hmm—

[There goes the grin. He’s not sure how to respond at first, and barely manages an awkward chuckle. Anything to stall and save face for a few seconds.] It’s, ah. Aha. Hm. Well— it’s a fairly, uh. [Well, none of those words form a complete sentence, but at least they are words in the English language. Louis tries again.] It’s a fairly simple repair, fortunately— aha— so not too much to, uh. To worry about. Or to see. Now we just, uh, wait for it to cool a bit and we’ll see how it works..?

[stutteringschemer]

“Official Carpenter Business” [Louis/Gwen]

[gwennowandthen]

*She scowled, unable to get into the house. Yet. She would find her way in. She followed him, swinging her bag back and forth a little more forcefully.* Oh, he’s fine, I guess. I mean, he just broke his arm, that’s all.

*She faltered her steps, before hurrying to him again, needing to think quick of a reason of why he broke his arm.* The guys and I were having an arm wrestling competition and he didn’t think I could beat him. So… I did and… broke his arm in the process…

[stutteringschemer]

Oh. I suppose crutches don’t do much to help with a broken arm. Send him a hello from me, would you? And pass along my well-wishes?

[Louis gives a slight start as he picks up the ladder, turning to Gwen with wide, surprised eyes.] ... You broke his arm? Accidentally? [He stares for a moment, before he finally collects his wits enough to keep his mouth from hanging open.] Good heavens, please— remind me not to get on your bad side. Or to challenge you to arm wrestling competitions, either. You must have— quite the significant amount of muscle mass.

[He chuckles nervously, stepping back to let Gwen use the ladder.] Here you are. I may not be quite so strong as you, but I think I can sufficiently hold the base of a ladder.

[stutteringschemer]

Salutations [Life/Louis]

[heartflamehero]

*Life looked behind him and smiled at the tiny shop. It was nothing like the shops on the island. Then again, with an island that relied on technology, everything was different there. He looked up at him as he mentioned it not being around, frowning and confused at this. He didn’t question it, though.*

Oh, I am not LOOking for ANYThing in PARTICular… Just some new Farms so that I may Learn About Their FARming TECHNIques. Do you know of any?

[stutteringschemer]

Really? You’re in luck then, actually—

[Louis pointed south, chuckling.] The closest farm’s right across that bridge, there. Belongs to a man named Toy, if I’m not mistaken. Or that’s his nickname, perhaps? I’m not sure, I can’t say I know him very well myself. Might be worth having a poke around his fields, however? You might be able to learn quite a bit observationally.

[stutteringschemer]

Salutations [Life/Louis]

heartflamehero:

*Life always thought about growing flowers, but they never looked as beautiful as the ones before him. Sure, they grew, but he compared their beauty to be… average. The ones before him were extraordinary. If he could, he would stare at them for hours. But life had something else in mind for him.*

*He looked up at the newcomer and beamed up at him, pleased by such a warm greeting.* I am! I Guess you live ARound here, huh? It is such a nice Place to Visit. It is calm and Quiet, Which is so UNlike HEARTFlame ISland.

[Louis’s smile faltered only for a moment— taken off guard suddenly by the odd fluctuation in the stranger’s tone of voice. The second time it came around, however, Louis had caught himself well enough to put the polite smile back on.]

I do— I live in that building there, in fact. [He points out the lab beside the tool shop.] The tool shop next door is mine as well, though it won’t be open for another hour or so. It is a lovely valley, and probably one that deserves a great deal more tourism than it gets these days. ..Though I suppose that’ll change soon enough. [He shrugs, his smile turning sad for a moment - before he catches himself once more.]

Need help finding anything in particular?

[stutteringschemer]

“Official Carpenter Business” [Louis/Gwen]

[gwennowandthen]

*She cleared her throat, crossing her arms behind her back.* It’s a new feature we’re doing this year. Kind of like a survey, to see if other townspeople like it or not.

*Well, that idea went out the window. Now she had to come up with a new one. How disappointing and frustrating. Gwen looked over at where the ladder might be and frowned. Guess she wasn’t gong to get inside the house any time soon. With his next set of questions, she paled. Damn it.*

I may work in the “office”, but I’m perfectly capable of doing an inspection. Heck, I’ve held an ax the moment I could, y’know. Joe’s taking care of other houses and Kurt had an injury. So, I’m filling in for him.

[stutteringschemer]

[He steps outside, closing the front door behind him with a nervous clearing of his throat.] 

Ah— I don’t mean to question your ability to do their job, of course— I’ll be more than happy to fill in for one of them and hold the bottom for you. Not to mention I’m sorry to hear Kurt hurt himself! Is he alright? 

[He scratches the side of his head, leading the way around the side of the house toward the ladder.] He doesn’t need crutches or anything, does he?

[stutteringschemer]

Morning People [Joe/Louis]

[not-a-pirate]

Hey, man–I know it sounds like a great thing, but when you end up spending the rest of the day bored out of your mind it’s just like, ‘Oh man, I wish I slowed down so I have something to do later’.

[grins] Sure thing!

[stutteringschemer]

[Chuckles.] I don’t suppose I’ve ever had that particular problem, either. I always feel like I have more to do than there are hours in the day, you know. Or, ah— hours in the night, I guess. On account of that’s usually where I spend them.

Excellent! [Beams happily.] I’ll finish my walk and pop back over with them once your shift’s over, how’s that?

[stutteringschemer]

In Town [Chase/Louis]

[everthechase-blog]

[Grins, shrugging.] I guess not, but you gotta learn to cook eventually, right? Not necessarily a guarantee anyone you’d meet could cook. [Chuckles to himself, adding ingredients to the already sizzling pan and missing the lack of enjoyment Louis had for the wine.]

Drones? [Pauses, looking over his shoulder for a moment at that word and pulling a face. Even the correction does nothing to fix his expression. Sets the cutting board aside and lifts the wine, pouring an amount into the skillet and listening with an unsure expression.] … huh.

[Smiles, half-amused at the scrappy man taking in the turned off machines to study.] You’re welcome to anything you find in my attic, heh– there’s a few things up there I’d be happy to get rid of. [Shakes his head.] That Funland stuff all sounds like science fiction to me, though. I thought that place was like– a theme park or something, what’s it doing with automatrons and drones?

[stutteringschemer]

[Laughs.] I’ll be a bachelor for life, I’m sure— and I’m a lucky bachelor, too. Because I love cup ramen. ♪

I’ll be happy to take you up on that offer! [Then he blinks, surprised by Chase’s assessment of the corporation.] Well— I assume they’re designed to check on the town’s resources. I haven’t been able to really figure it out just yet, actually. A lot of them are set to self-destruct if they’re tampered with. But I would assume that they’re made to report back to headquarters about things like.. oh, I don’t know..

[Sips his wine.] Hm-- [And clears his throat.] Aherm. Soil quality, water quality.. how much work it’s going to take to level an area and build on it, that sort of thing. They’re very advanced from what I can tell about them while they’re still functioning. It would be incredibly useful if I could actually keep one intact in my lab— I’d learn a great deal about Funland, I think.

[stutteringschemer]

In Town [Chase/Louis]

[everthechase-blog]

[Eyebrows rise up at that, lowering the wine glass from his lips with clearly more appreciation for its flavor than his friend had.] Eh, what? You’re living like a real bachelor, then. [Clears his throat, smiling wide as he sets the bottle next to the stove and nonchalantly sets to gathering the ingredients to work with.]

Heh, right– at least you’ll have the stuff to work with when you have something to work on. [Quietly begins chopping, musing in thought for a second before adding:] Deconstruction work, though - like, on your own stuff or things people are bringing to you? [Glances over his shoulder, smirking as he pauses his chopping.] I’ve probably got a few things you could deconstruct back at home if you need more materials or ideas or whatever.

[stutteringschemer]

I suppose I am— [He chuckles awkwardly.] —and why shouldn’t I? There’s no shame in being what you are, right?

[Sips at the wine a little, still pursing his lips each time he does.] Hmm— mostly the things people bring me. Sometimes I’ll find things myself. Funland’s been leaving— hmm, drones is too ambitious of a word, I think, with too many militaristic connotations— more accurate to call them automatrons, I think. Funlands been leaving them all over the place, and sometimes I’ll find them deactivated and take them home to look at their construction. The inventor on staff in Funland HQ is an absolute genius. It’s sort of like a— crash course on robotics, for me.

I’ll gladly take anything off your hands you care to donate to the cause, though. ♪ Taking things apart for their parts is a lot of fun. And very educational.

[stutteringschemer]

“Official Carpenter Business” [Louis/Gwen]

[gwennowandthen]

*Dang it. So close to calling her bluff. She quickly thought of something to cover it up, if pursued again about it. Gwen just had to be quick on her feet.* A ladder for both the inside and outside would be fine–

*She stared at him then smiled.* Louis, Louis, Louis… Since when have we carpenters ever charged for an inspection~? If we find something wrong then… we’ll charge you the cost of the repair. An inspection, though? Completely free of charge! We wouldn’t want your house to cave in from any pile up of snow and losing anything… important, right?

[stutteringschemer]

[He scratches the side of his head, frowning.] Hm. Now that you mention it, I can’t remember the last time the carpenters had to do any sort of inspection, whether I was charged for it or not.

[He laughs.] Snow doesn’t pile up on the inside of my house, Gwen! I leave all the windows closed! If you really want to take a good look at the roof though there should be a ladder right around the corner there— [He points to the left of his house.] You want me to come hold the bottom for you? Wait—

[Makes a realization for the second time in this conversation.] If this is official carpenter business, how come you’re here doing it all by yourself? Shouldn’t it be Joe and Kurt out here? I thought you just worked in the office?

[bowtiedbaker]

errand boy (Louis/Carl)

[bowtiedbaker]

Hm!♪ [Tilts his head, giggling.] Makes sense enough to me, hmhm, more profit in selling something new!♪ [Taps his fingers against his arms behind his back, watching him set aside the spool curiously and tilting his head the other way to follow the motion - watching him almost as though taking in every detail, but clearly buzzing for the caffeine now as well.]

[Except for the sudden buzzkill of a fire hazard– ] Ah– [Blinks, standing straighter for a moment in surprise, and then smiling awkwardly for the laughed reassurance.] Ah– hmhm– hm! I’m glad I brought it in, then, goodness–! Of course– [Smiles awkwardly, turning to look over the shelves and musing on what exactly insulated wire would look like.]

I guess I’m gonna owe you pretty big for saving me trouble and a fire hazard! Hmhm, hm– [Blinks, picking up a spool of something and glancing over his shoulder to see what the other man was doing.] I guess I have a pretty big favor to ask of you even more than that though– [Pauses, hesitating before falling into a more sincere tone:] Please don’t tell Duke about how– how bad it was? Or– or how it happened? [Smiles nervously, looking back to the spool and trying to read the scratched up label - before walking back with the spool in his hands, and tone falling more playful again.] I’d be in very very big trouble if he were to find out, hmhm–

[stutteringschemer]

[He begins carefully heating up the solder holding the broken wire in place, humming to himself as he does— well practiced fingers careful and precise as they work. When he’s done, he gently lifts the wire out of place - allowing the now molten metal to sit for a moment while he lays the old wire on Ann’s work desk.]

Hmm? [He glances up once this is accomplished.] Oh— sure, I’ve got no problem keeping quiet. For what it’s worth, I actually don’t know Duke very well. I don’t visit the bar here in town much. [He smiles sincerely.] Which I say only to hopefully console you that there will be, uh— less opportunity for blunders on my behalf, I suppose?

[He takes the spool of wire (without even thinking to reassure Carl that it was, indeed, what he’d been looking for).] Thank you much. [And busies himself cutting a short length of it to match the length of the pierced wire, stripping the ends to give him just enough metal surface to work with. Then its back to the soldering gun, attaching the new length of wire to the two points the old wire connected.]

Here we go.. cross your fingers that this does this trick. ♪

[stutteringschemer]

Morning People [Joe/Louis]

[not-a-pirate]

[Joe shrugs, letting the topic of Louis’ health drop] 

Not exactly sure what’s on the agenda, at least officially. Maybe lunch? Haven’t had lunch yet. Then just a lot of finishing touches on furniture, like sanding and staining.

I dunno, man. I ended up doing so much this morning that I’m just a little lost on what to do next.

[stutteringschemer]

Lunch is good. [He ponders Joe’s dilemma thoughtfully.] You know, I don’t often experience “too much productivity first thing in the morning”— seems like an awfully nice problem to have, actually. I’m just as lost as you are.

Say— now that I’m thinking about it, maybe you could help me out? [He grins, excited at his new idea.] Think you’ll be spending any more time fishing, today? If I, for instance, lent you a few baits and bobbers— do you think you could give me your estimation of them?

[stutteringschemer]

“Official Carpenter Business” [Louis/Gwen]

gwennowandthen

Well, you look more of a mess than ever. *She took in his appearance and raised an eyebrow. He clearly just rolled out of bed, if you could call it that. She tried to take a peek over his shoulder, but frowned when she could hardly see anything.*

*Oh, wait, he just asked her something.* Uh, not so much the tool shop. I mean, we have a couple of tools that need to be looked at but… *She had to make something up. Anything, so long as it got her into the house.* I’m here to inspect elements of the house. The inside, outside, the roof. All that official carpenter business, y’know?

Oh.. [What a greeting to be hit with first thing in the morning upon waking up! Louis’s shoulders slump slightly, one hand immediately going to comb his (too messy to actually fix) hair into place with his fingers.] Okay..

Huh? “Official carpenter business”? [His attention turned toward his own ceiling.] Seems like you’d be able to see much more from the outside than in.. want me to fetch you a ladder or something? Wait— [He pauses, pursing his lips slightly.] This isn’t going to cost me anything, is it?

[stutteringschemer]

*He had been to this valley for sure. Life couldn't place his finger on it, but he had been there. Perhaps it was to meet someone or talk to someone else about something. He just couldn't be sure. After losing himself for the millionth time, he sat down in the grass and admired the nearby flowers. It didn't hurt to take a break... but he would rather figure out where he was and where he ought to go by now.*

[The bit of garden just outside his shop did not belong to the inventor, but that did not stop Louis from slowing down to admire it from time to time. The well-cultivated flowers were a testament to the care and love that had been put into them, and that was certainly something even Louis could admire. For reasons.]

[Today, however, Louis noticed a young man he did not recognize near said flowers as he opened his front door. He had an hour before the tool shop was scheduled to open and had been planning to sit outside for a bit and enjoy the garden, but now it would appear he might have to share the space with a stranger.]

[Well, only one thing to do in that case: make him not a stranger.]

Hello, sir. [Louis smiled, giving the stranger a wave as he approached.] Are you visiting town?

[stutteringschemer]

*No, she couldn't see anything from this window. With a huff, she went to the next one, hoping to see inside it. No luck there, either. Tim must have been imagining that he was seeing it, then. After all, there's no way something like that could be created. Could it? Well, there was only one way to find out. Gwen strut to the front door and knocked hard three times.*

[Early afternoon caught Louis still sleeping, having been up a little later than he’d originally planned to be the night before. He’d spent the better half of the night chasing an idea that he absolutely couldn’t let go of and had eventually clambered up into his hammock with all the dismay of having, in his mind, failed.]

[Three loud knocks woke him from his dozing, however - and a glance over his head provided evidence that the sun was up in abundance, peeking in through the drawn shades. Oops. That might be someone knocking to get him up to open the tool shop— which would make sense, considering it was likely meant to be open to the public several hours ago.]

I’m coming! I’ll be right there!

[After a not-so-graceful exiting of said hammock (he really needed to figure out a better system for that thing one of these days) and the dawning of his glasses and a lab coat shuffled on over his pajamas, Louis answered the front door, rubbing a palm into one sleepy eye behind the frames.]

Oh.. hullo Gwen. D’you need something in the tool shop?

[stutteringschemer]

Morning People [Joe/Louis]

[not-a-pirate]

[rolls his eyes]

Do you really, though? I mean, do you really sit around all the time when you’re fixing stuff?

I mean… if you are sitting when your fixing stuff all the time that kind of explains how you get so tired, sitting for too long usually makes me sleepy.

[stutteringschemer]

[He shakes his head, noting his own cheekiness with a chuckle.] Oh, I’m only teasing. Though if I’m being serious with you, you are right— I think the most time I spend sitting down is when I’m keeping hours at the tool shop. Dreadful waste of time, if you ask me. If I could cut them back a bit and stick to just my labwork, maybe..

[He shrugs.] ... But then I’m up all night and tired in the morning, anyway. Ah, well. But enough about my bad habits! What’s on the agenda for the rest of Joe’s day? ♪

[bowtiedbaker]

errand boy (Louis/Carl)

[bowtiedbaker]

[Giggles into his mug, looking down at its low contents with an almost sad sigh - but also hesitating to add more caffeine to his system just now. After all, he might manage to get a couple of hours of sleep before his shift if the job ends up very easy, right? And the other man was doing wonders for making him stay awake–]

[Blinks, watching the man lift the machine with an almost surprised expression - it had seemed much heavier to him than it looked to the other man.] Oh– right!♪ [Smiles wide, standing to finish off the last of his coffee and abandon the mug, following after with a glance to the plate on the floor and pausing in the doorway with a tilt of his head and even more curious look around the new room.]

Goodness, I haven’t been back here before– hm? Oh– sure– [Turns his attention to the goggles, taking down a pair and turning them over in his hands - saying a small prayer for his hair and good looks before trying them on and situating them. Giggles again, smiling somewhat uncomfortably in the goggles as he follows after.] I really appreciate your help, goodness– I’d be at a loss right now if you weren’t here!♪ [Bats his eyelashes to the other man as he sidles up, hands behind his back and eyes glancing to the new, unfamiliar piece of technology the man had plugged in.] D’you do a lot of– repairs like this at home?♪

[stutteringschemer]

Not at all, actually. [He laughs briefly, a little anxiously, before leaning forward to grab a pair of goggles for himself. He snaps these on over his glasses and casts the other man an awkward grin.] Usually I’m more inclined to push a new sale than to fix an old product, aha— but I do recycle a lot of parts from broken or abandoned machinery, so that’s almost the same thing, right?

Right. [Chuckles, looking for (and finding shortly there-after) a spool of solder, setting it aside for use later.] What I’m going to do first is take this pierced wire out— and lucky you brought it when you did, as this thing is sort of a fire hazard, actually. Haha! While I’m working on this would you look on those shelves right there and see if you can find me a spool of insulated wire?