2024-12-07 - Emergency Repairs and Emergency Coffee

It's a bright, shining start to the day and isn't that just truly, truly awful? At least in Ari's worldview at the moment, having forgotten that the Castle's break room is currently without a functioning coffee maker since last night.

Not his fault! It might have been him using it when it broke, but he didn't break it. There's a distinction. Except that distinction doesn't really matter when he is going without caffeine.

And what a day it's shaping up to be. Someone discovered a series of broken set builds in the storage room just as they were being pulled out for use in a returning production from last year's holidays. No one knows how it was broken, whether it was stored away that way or if something happened inside of storage itself, but now it's all hands on deck to repair or replace what's been damaged.

Ari has cordoned off a section of the Castle's workroom for just that purpose. It was a big set, so it's a big build to replace it, and he starts dragging the raw materials out of storage to get to work. Lots of lumber and metal sheeting, to start with. He pauses to catch his breath, hands on his hips as he contemplates the work to be done.

Ethan is the sort to bring his, familiar tools to the workshop even if their is some overlap. He steps in pulled a distinctive Milwaukee red roller cart behind him loaded with the tools of his trade and probably more weeks worth of his salary than he will ever admit. "Well. That's busted," he helpfully announces as he looks towards the broken set and wheels his way towards Ari, "From that look I'm guessing you're the guy in charge of how we're putting this back together? How can I help."

The workshop is, as always, a flurry of activity because it's a central hub for a lot of the technicians who work out of the Castle. But there's a sort of cone of stillness from where Ari has blocked space off, and he's just standing in it. Which means he notices the new arrival immediately, and from taking in the accompanying tools, it's not hard to guess that Ethan is here to help.

Ari's expression fills with relief. "I have some diagrams from last year that we can work off of," he says, and tries very much not to sound as filled with terror about this massive responsibility as he actually is. "I'm just glad we caught this early, so we have time before the show starts its rotation. Let me get you a copy of this so, uh, maybe you can start cutting pieces out for the backdrops?"

Somehow he's thought ahead enough to prepare, which means in short order he has a manilla envelope for Ethan that has a packet of set diagrams inside that includes dimensions for the backdrop.

Ethan sets his roller down and takes the envelope with a nod. "When does it need to be ready by?" he asks before flipping the envelope ready to start thumbing through the building documents inside, "You've got me for a day or two at least, but after that I'll have to ask about changing some other projects. No big deal, just need to get them a heads up..." he eyes the broken set again, "Any idea what happened to it?"

"End of the week, the first show is 1700 on Friday," Ari says as he flips through his own set of paperwork. "So we'll need it by mid-afternoon at the latest." He sucks in air through his teeth, brows furrowing further and further together as he continues reviewing the documentation. And then finally, he lets out a great big heaving sigh and sets it aside.

Put on a brave face, Ari. He squares his shoulders and nods once, trying to project confidence. "However long you're available works for me, I'll take all of the help we can get. I'd say feel free to use anything we have here but it looks like you came well prepared!"

As to why the set is in pieces in a pile near the wall, he can only shake his head. Looks like he has no idea.

Ethan looks at Ari a moment and then steps closer to give a clap on the shoulder of the other man. "We got it, don't worry. I've been under worse time constraints and these don't look too bad" he closes the envelop and gives it a flick with his finger and then turns to look around the workshop, "But first.. is there any coffee around here?"

The last thing Ari wants to do is fail on his first real assignment as a set builder. So the anxiety that might only be visible in some subtle fidgeting and the flickering back-and-forth of his gaze is nonetheless very real, and he shrinks a little bit under the clap to his shoulder. "Thanks," he says, a bit wheezy. "We got this."

All geared up to start, Ari instead comes back to a screeching halt when Ethan asks after coffee. A bit of nervous laughter follows. "So about that... our coffee machine broke last night. I have a ticket in to fix it but I don't think anyone's seen to it yet," he admits.

Ethan frowns at that news and shakes his head, "I'll be the first to admit that I've got a loose interpretation of OSHA regulations but I'm pretty sure that that's a violation of several not mention a few from the Department of Labor" he tsks and pulls out his cell phone and starts thumbing away at it. "What would you want? I've got someone that I patch their apartment wall for and didn't report it so they owe me a favor and I'll have them deliver from the coffee shop in park. Can't see how we'll get much work done otherwise."

The OSHA reference has Ari laughing, first nervously and then a bit more genuine as it sinks in. "Yeah, for sure," he says, and then Ethan's offer has him pausing. "Oh, uh..."

He hesitates, looking for a moment as if he might refuse, but then he shakes his head. He really needs that coffee. "Just a small latte, with oatmilk. Thanks!" And while it's true, they might not get a whole lot done in the meantime until their coffee is delivered, at the very least Ari can return to his previous task of hauling out raw materials for them to use in the coming hours and days. Eventually he'll have a nice stack of lumber available to pull from.

Ethan nods and taps in the order to his favor ower. A minute later his phone dings in reponse and he calls out "It's on its way". Meanwhile, as Ari pulls out material Ethan pours through the build documents and compares it to what's still standing to see what needs to be cut and hammer and nailed. "Honestly.. yeah. we can do this. Won't be too bad. It's busted but it's not totaled and it's not like it needs to be built to Code."

Ari takes a private moment to fistpump about the coffee being on the way. He was truly desperate for a cup, so this is something of a life saver. And then he resumes hauling, soon enough stacking the last piece of lumber against the wall.

"Yeah, let's get this cut down to size so I can start working on the painting. I have someone trying to find pictures of it actually set up from last year for reference, but for now we just have the diagrams to go off of," he says as he pulls a measuring tape from his toolbelt, eyeing up the first piece of wood he's laid out for cutting.

While he works, he keeps his focus downwards at what his hands are doing, too aware (and too fresh out of school) to really do a lot of multitasking while he's using dangerous power tools. But he does pause at one point to look up, and ask, "So, how long have you been at Spellbound?" out of some need to fill the silence.

Ethan pulls out a few pieces of wood and lays them out with an eye towards the diagrams again. He taps the page and says, "We've got a few of these to cut, we'll save us some time in the end to make a jig first." And he starts in on that. Some tools come out of his box, a carpenters pencil gets tucked behind is ear and the sound of an electric handsaw fills the air now and then. Eyes and ears protection? Nah.

"I came on.. going on three years now. Spent most of my time building the apartments and a few other buildings around the place... how about you?"

One of the great benefits of doing the kind of act Nova and her brother do is that they don't need a set, they travel light and they travel fast....but one of the great draw backs is that sometimes they use props. And props break.

Nova could, potentially, make the repair herself to the prop but she harbors no delusions about her own handiness when it comes to putting things back together so instead she's made her way towards the workshop with a cardboard box in her arms. Inside the box, judging by the sound of it rustling around is something wooden and something metal....and maybe a bell or three.

Okay, sure, yes, it was Layla that Ethan fixed the hole in the apartment room's wall for. Is she ever going to explain how exactly that problem came about?

Unlikely.

Still, though, Layla takes favors owed seriously. When she gets the text from Ethan, she rolls her eyes but makes an excuse to her fellow skaters and excuses herself from the Ice Palace. They'll be fine without her for now.

Dressed in a tight red long-sleeved athletic top and black leggings with a big, puffy black coat on top, she pushes inside with three coffees in her hands: one for Ethan, one for Ari, and one for herself.

"Alright, fellas. Come and get 'em," she says, smirking and setting the coffees on a table. Layla leans against it, glancing around. "What are you two up to in here?"

Her gaze flicks over to Nova as she arrives, eyebrows rising. "Hiya."

It's already been a day and it's, what, not even noon yet? He's working to measure and then cut several large pieces of lumber, which will be made much easier thanks to the jig Ethan is in the process of making. "I just started this week," he's saying to Ethan, trying to remain chipper.

But he's gone without coffee for too long, so when someone comes into the workshop that he doesn't recognize, Ari hopes that they're the coffee deliverer. Though as he sets his tools aside and circles around the workbench to approach Nova, his hope rapidly diminishes. "Oh no, did something break?" he asks, looking with concern at the box she has in her hands. Then he casts a surreptitious glance around for his sister (who just so happens to be the propmaster) but, no luck. "I'm sure we can fix it."

His hopes and dreams aren't dashes forever, though, as following not long behind is someone bearing coffee! Layla's arrival has Ari's eyes widening behind his glasses, and he excuses himself from Nova a moment to collect the blessed bean juice. "Thank you so much," he says, and then gestures to the area of the workshop he has cordoned off, continuing with, "We're rebuilding a set that was damaged. Bit of a time crunch."

To Nova, though, he adds, "That doesn't mean I can't help, though! What are we working with here?" With tasks at hand to focus on, it's easier for Ari to keep up with conversations without worrying too much about saying the wrong thing. That and the coffee helps, too.

Ethan gives a nod in greeting to Nova as she comes in but then dips his head to focus on drilling in a screw to finish up the jig he was working on making. Layla's arrival has him abandoning that work. the tools are set away and he crosses the workshop to take the coffee from her with a beam of a smile, "Thank you, Layla. Consider us even." He lets Ari explain the situation to her and then waves to the broken set. "Just don't go anywhere near that. it's broke enough."

When Ari approaches, Nova starts to show him what's in the box until he gets distracted by the arrival of the coffee, and whatever she was about to say in answer to his question about did something break is put on hold for the moment, instead she glances in Layla's direction with a very slight upwards lift of her chin in response, along with a, "Hi."

But coffee is the life blood of the world, so she bides her time, finding a spare few inches on the nearest flat surface to put the box she was carrying before letting her eyes wander around the workshop. Especially the large project that they've got going on, a nod offered in response to Ari's explanation as to what is happening and that it doesn't mean she's SOL, assuring him, "I'm in no hurry." But as for what they are working with? That requires her to finally open the box, and then she tips it forward so that the rest of the room can see what is inside, "It goes inside a walking stick...very basic. But it's supposed to pop out a dumb bouquet of flowers, only...I think the gears have gone or maybe the spring?"

"I don't think we've met yet. I'm Layla," the raven-haired woman says to Ari, flashing him a friendly smile. She sips her coffee and glares at Ethan, that smile going into more of a faux-scowl.

"Funny, Mr. Quarterback. I only break my stuff usually - you only have to worry about your stuff if you make me mad," she teases. As Nova opens her box, Layla comes closer, peeking inside.

Nova's willingness to let caffeination happen first is much appreciated by Ari, who says a quick "Thanks," and also a "Sorry!" after he's accepted his coffee. Which he repeats to Layla, adding in a "I'm Ari, nice to meet you," before he scampers away to look at what's been broken.

He frowns over the broken prop, mulling over it with his coffee in hand. Eventually, he hazards a guess of "The spring, probably," based on what he knows about this type of prop, but he'll have to take a better look. And that means he needs some more space, so he spends the next few moments shuffling tools and half-finished projects from this workbench to that workbench, so there's room to lay out the pieces of Nova's prop.

Once that's cleared, though, he gestures for Nova to do so if she pleases, otherwise he'll handle it himself. "My sister Lora is the new Propmaster here but I'm decent enough at putting things back together. If I can't get it fixed, I'll track her down for you."

Ethan smirks at Layla and arches a brow questioningly towards. "What did the wall do to make you angry then?" he asks, no expecting an answer and takes a sip from his coffee, "Thank you for bringing this. Apparently the coffee maker in here got broken and they still kept the place open." He gives a look towards Ari and Nova to eye the broken prop a moment but sees that Ari has it all under control. He looks back towards Layla, "If you know anyone that's handy and free we could use some help here too."

Nova is either built of patience, or has nothing but time today. She simply waits while Ari clears off the space, hanging onto the box in the meantime. When the space is cleared she helpfully dumps the contents of the box onto the workbench, then moves to tuck the now empty box beneath it, "Like I said, I'm not in any hurry for it to be fixed. The show can go on without it...I don't even use it all that often any more."

She steps back from the workbench though, in case those with the appropriate skills need to move more freely and she is in their way. "Not sure I've met Lora, yet. But I'm sure you're both very fantastic at your jobs." She glances over in Layla and Ethan's direction, but then promptly looks away when that suggestion of there being a need for help. Nope. No. Nope. Not her.

Ari sorts through the various pieces that Nova has dumped onto the workbench, arranging them so that they are laid out in an organized way. Everything at 90 degrees from each other. If you know what knolling is, that's what he's doing. Yes, he's a nerd.

"Oh, thanks. I'm still new but I hope this all works out. In the meantime, let me see what I can do with this..."

His head bows down and then he's gone, mentally, focused on putting the pieces of the prop together in their previous arrangement. Eyebrows drawn together in concentration, his much-needed coffee is entirely forgotten about as his attention span narrows down to just The Work.

Ethan does not ignore his coffee. He takes another drink of it and eyes Ari and Nova again a moment, "It also so busy down here? I used to the.. park breaking a lot, but didn't realize you performers were so hard on everything too. All this job security, it's great."

Not knowing anything about knolling, Nova watches how Ari lays out everything with some interest, but careful to not interfere with his work or his focus. After a second she reaches into the back pocket of her jeans to pull out a cellphone, checking the screen quickly before she glances at Ethan, "Not sure if it's always so busy...first time I've broken anything since arriving."

The cellphone is tucked back into her pocket before she continues, "But I wouldn't say we're hard on everything. It just gets used...and use means breaking eventually."

"I am neither handy, nor particularly free," Layla informs Ethan, snorting and shaking her head. She turns to Nova, considering the box's contents again. "You guys do magic, right? Who's your brother again?"

She smiles at Ari and is about to say something, but then her phone buzzes in her bag. Layla groans and pulls it out to check it, shaking her head as she puts it away. "Esme the Ice Princess is going to throw a fit if I'm not back for the next routine, so I need to get headed back. Nice to see you all, and nice to meet you, Ari." With that, Layla disappears the way she came, rushing back to the Ice Palace.

Ari isn't so far gone that he's oblivious to the conversation around him, so he does manage to contribute a quick, "I guess I can't really say for sure since I'm so new, but it seems pretty busy even here at the Castle. I bet the big workshop on the main island is even busier."

This is about when he remembers that hey, he has coffee! And the work-pause continues so that he can pick up his cup and take a drink. In fact, he's mid-sip when Layla announces her need to exit, so he lifts a hand to wave at her. "Thanks again for the coffee!" he says, because he remembered he already said it was nice to meet her.

Usually he repeats that once or twice. He's very proud of himself for not doing that, this time around.

"I think this just needs a new spring," Ari announces, after a few more moments of fiddling. He goes to one of the nearby sorting cabinets and starts pulling drawers open seemingly at random, digging around in them with focused intent.

Ethan waves to Layla as she leaves and then nods towards Nova, "Make sense. Some things are just used harder than others." He eyes the broken set pieces again and then moves off towards his tools again. The jig completed, he starts gathering up the pieces of wood that will be cut with it to start a queue.

"Bye." Nova calls after Layla as she makes her exit, then turns her attention back towards Ari when he makes his determination that it seems to be as simple as a replacement spring, "That seems like such a small thing to be causing such big problems."

As he starts sorting through drawers she shrugs her shoulders easily at Ethan, "I suppose so, yeah. Just like anything else...some people go through shoes really fast, others don't. So what happened to that?" She wonders, pointing towards the set pieces that they'd been working on when she arrived.

Ari eventually strikes gold in the sixth or seventh little drawer he searches through, letting out a triumphant "Ah-hah!" as he pulls out a spring that looks like a visual match to the one from the broken prop. When he returns to the workbench, he looks over at the old set build that Nova indicates, before considering the new pieces that Ethan has started to work on.

As he assembles the prop back into shape, he says, "It's for a performance starting up this week. Not sure how it got damaged, that's before my time, but basically every piece was damaged when we pulled it out of storage. So we're trying to replicate it with the set diagrams." Ari thumbs the hidden button and voila!, the previously compressed bouquet of flowers pops out of the stick, and he presents both to Nova. "All fixed! Let me know if there's anything else I can help with."

With that done, it's time to get back to his assigned work, and that means assisting Ethan with prepping the backdrop. With the jig done, it's shaping up to be a much faster task. Maybe they'll make the deadline after all.

The sound of a saw continues now and then as Ethan sets himself to cutting the various lumber they will need. A pile of cut and marked pieces end up being pilled near the set as he continues and he diligently works away.