Video - Grasshopper 20

[adregem]

[ The ICP comes on, broadcasting a message to all from the Library. Two figures stand side by side, one decked in elegant custom garb; the other in utilitarian Purple, with the standard coat that comes with their gear. Ladies and gentlemen, presenting Glorfindel to the left, his smile open and inviting; next to him is Roland, arms crossed against his chest, expression a bit more serious. ]



Greetings, all! For those who are new to the train, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Glorfindel, and this is a brief announcement for those on the Purple Team. And perhaps, for those who may just be interested in what we have to say, colors aside. [ There's a playful lilt at the end of his statement, but he continues with the broadcast. ] You are all cordially invited to the very first Purple Team Mixer, to be held at around Grasshopper 27 in a location to be announced, on the Train.

[ Roland nods and continues where Glorfindel left off. ]

That's right. My name is Roland for our newcomers onboard, and the purpose of this mixer is so we can get to know one another a little bit better. We've got a lot of new additions to the Team, and Glorfindel and I - [ He glances to his side. ] will be acting as two of Purple's Team Leads starting now, as well. We hope to work hard for your continued trust. [ He makes a fist with his right hand and emphasizes his point with a small pump in the air. Glorfindel dovetails after. ]

The mixer is quite simple really! Aside from mingling and gathering as one, we'd also like to discuss various topics of interest such as supplies, mission protocols, training opportunities, and how the two of us can help any one of you, in any way we can.

So it's a mixer and a Purple town hall, if you'd like to look at it from that perspective. If you have ideas on how to improve things, this is the time to come and share your thoughts. We welcome it, and we'll do our best to facilitate everything neatly and concisely so the right steps can be put into place for the betterment of all.

[ Both of them sound like they've done this before...The tone shifts slightly more pleasant now, a little more casually as Glorfindel lights up (not literally, not yet!) ]

Plus, there will be bar snacks. [ 'Bar' meaning yknow. He's trying to be subtle! There are children onboard!! ] Oh, and of course, non-alcoholic beverages too, for those who are underage or can't have alcohol! It's going to be fun, even if we'll be planning alongside the chatting!

[ Roland smiles with a side glance to his new work husband partner, and turns back to close off the broadcast. ]

Glorfindel and I are ready to be of service to the team. Purple is made up of a lot of talented folks, and with our combined efforts, I'm certain we can make our dynamic even better than it already is. We're looking forward to seeing everyone then. [ The two share a look before nodding to the ICP. ]

Thank you for your time. Over and out.

(OOC: either glorfindel and/or roland will be threadhopping to reply to tags on this post! for Purple-mates, the actual mixer log with top-levels will be on August 23 IRL, so after the beach episode. so we can all have fun first!! or potentially get memshare trauma, which is the best time to discuss work, right?? please use this as your IC channel to discuss things and we can assume that these 2 will be taking notes as they go! )

Comments

Re: < Action! for Glorfindel >

[laurefindil]

"Considering the number of members of the Purple Team, even if only 50% show up, we'll have a good turnout," Glorfindel pointed out.

"We'll want to start the discussion part before the drinking gets serious, though."

[adregem]

"Well, you never know. Some people get better ideas when their tongues are bit more loose." He jokes despite being in total agreement with that. Best to get the big issues out of the way before they can focus on the fun part. His journal is out, and he's writing things down as he speaks.

"But you're right. It's a really good thing you came up with this idea, since out of all the teams, Purple's got the most members. Plus, if the mission logs are to be believed, we get the most well-rounded tasks on missions too." Then, the scribbling stops before he closes the notebook momentarily, turning to Glorfindel. "Hey, I forgot to tell you something."

Was it something fairly serious...?

[laurefindil]

"We need to make it very clear that, though we are calling it a Mixer, that all Purple Team members are welcome, not just the adults. If the Train selected them, their voice counts. Period." Glorfindel did not understand the disenfranchising of the young just because of age. But then Elven children's minds developed quite quickly. "And often, they know how to think outside the box and can come up with unique solutions that might not have occurred to anyone else."

"Please don't tell me you are allergic to pastries," Glorfindel said. "That would make me very sad."

[adregem]

"Right and right." Roland easily shares Glorfindel's conviction on the matter. "Though, I guess we should have just called it a Purple party. I guess mixer isn't what they're calling it these days..." Almost half of the responses were either commenting on the booze, or wondering what a Mixer even was.

He smiles widely, shaking his head. "No, no. That would make me really sad too, believe it or not!" He shifts gears for a moment, and he meets Glorfindel's gaze with a sincerity that was not present in their jokes mere moments before.

"I just wanted to thank you." He uncrosses his arms. "For the trust. I won't let you down. That's a promise." That extends to everyone really - Sarai, Dread, and everyone in Purple too. But Glorfindel vouched for him, worked side-by-side with him. These things matter in the long run for Roland, and he's not one to dismiss gratitude when it counts.

[laurefindil]

Glorfindel looked down, smiling widely, then looked back up. "You earned it, in my opinion. Your words are strong, but more importantly, you back them up with your actions. You worked as hard, if not harder than anyone else on the last mission, which was what cemented it for me."

"Some are...big picture people, they dream big, but have no follow-through. Others are geniuses at taking another's idea and breaking it down to achievable bits and making it real. Yet others have the enthusiasm to take an idea and run with it, coming up with something completely off the wall. Purple needs all of these types, and those that," he drew a little Venn diagram in the air with light, like one would with a sparkler, "intersect need the most support. You both intersect and support. So I will support you," he said with a grin.

"And we will have pastries to keep up our energy, since you are not allergic to them!"

In his experience, you came up with a Great Plan, then you put it into motion and watch it go slightly sideways, like their party had. The key to great leadership was to be able to modify a plan on the fly, to mold it to the needs that develop. Time would tell if they were going to be great leaders or not, but they were off to a good start.

[adregem]

To say that Roland was engrossed in Glorfindel's little display was an understatement. He watches him trace light out of thin air, every nugget of wisdom he drops caught and stored away, gratefully. He wasn't unused to hearing things like this. You didn't win an election twice if people didn't talk this way about you; if they didn't put their faith in you as Glorfindel seemed to have done. But that was just it - Roland couldn't deny him his opinion of what he could do; he has always been a man of action. It was up to him if his work moving forward would either validate Glorfindel's trust, or prove him wrong.

He dispels his thoughts with a shake of his head, smiling. "Right back at you, bud. You've been through way more than I have. So you gotta let me know if I'm going the right direction. I need be able to support you too." He feels his fist clench in determination. "You protected our teammates and the Terrans in a way no one else could a few weeks ago. I hope to learn more from your experience."

[laurefindil]

Glorfindel shrugged modestly. "With Elves, you...get a chance to make a lot of mistakes. If you live long enough you eventually learn," he said with a grin, completely ignoring the fact that he was leading from a fairly young age as Elves go.

He smiled at Roland. "I will let you know, if you let me know as well. These are not elves, so I need to make sure I'm not making assumptions, after all. We'll support each other. That's what friends and partners do, right?"

He liked it when Roland did the fist clench thing. It showed the man's passion for what he did, and Glorfindel admired that.

"I just did what needed to be done. Anyone with my power would have done the same, I'm sure," he said. "And you, without you, I wouldn't have felt free to do what I did!"

[adregem]

Friends and partners. Yeah, that sounded about right. His smile grows, confidence a bit more palpable as he nods to Glorfindel in agreement. "Right." He takes a seat next to him, removing his journal from his person and setting it down on the table. Roland is rarely seen without it.

"Then let's keep going. We can only do better from here." And he knows that's going to run true for the rest of the team. The rest of the train, even. Though he does wonder about something, which he verbalizes easily as he leans back on the chair.

"You know, you gotta tell me more about elves one of these days." He grins. "Is it impolite to ask an Elf their age?"

[laurefindil]

Glorfindel grinned. "Not at all. I am 4860 years into my reborn life. What else do you want to know? I can give you my resume," he said with a warm smile and a wink. Though, he was serious, he wanted Roland to be as confindent in him.

"And I agree, we are off to a great start!"

[adregem]

"4-4-4860 years old...!"

Roland's shocked face must be a pretty sight, when it's usually so calm and relaxed no matter the circumstance. "And that's...an Elf young adult, or...?" He's just like a storybook character from home! Magical creatures that can live for a long time, maybe even forever?

He finds it funny that all this time, despite his youthful face and young body, he considered himself old. "That must be one heck of a long resume, then. But I'm sure it's going to read easy. I was definitely right - you've got way more experience than anyone else I've ever met." There's a slight pause, before he turns back to Glorfindel. "What do you mean, reborn life?"

[laurefindil]

Glorfindel shook his head. "Once we are past the age of majority, it's just a number, really. Although we are all aware of the oldest of us, those who Awoke on the shores of the Lake, like Cirdan. I'm only Two Ages old in this life, so I'm about middle aged, I guess you might say?"

Roland wasn't wrong. Glorfindel had loads of experience. But was it useful in such a modern setting?

"Ah, well, I was originally born during the Age of the Two Trees, before they were destroyed and Varda created the Sun and the Moon from their fruit. About halfway through the First Age, while living in Gondolin, it was attacked, and I fell in battle, as the survivors fled. After a short period in the Halls of Waiting, I was given the opportunity to be reborn." He actually numbered his years from when he arrived back in Middle Earth, sometime later, but that was of little importance, right?

[adregem]

Roland is easily swept up in Glorfindel's tale because of the very nature of it - fantastical, like a movie being narrated to him in person. He is mostly silent, humming and nodding along, trying to keep up with his own feeling of enthrallment. Was this even real? Was the Voidtrecker so strong that it could pull creatures like Glorfindel into its orbit?

"A-Are you telling me you were there after the Sun and Moon were just made by Varda? The sun and moon? Wow. I - " he looks flabbergasted, in a good way. Like he isn't sure how to take the information. "Wait. You fell in battle?" His tone takes a turn for the serious, and if he's leaning in, it's only because he's invested in the story. "Who in their right mind would go up against Mister Nightlight himself?" There's a joke somewhere in there, laced with the seriousness of his question. Really, Roland's seen Glorfindel in action. He'd never even think of pitting himself against him.

[laurefindil]

Glorfindel nodded. "Absolutely. It was quite dark, though the stars were still there. But by then everything had adapted to the waxing and waning of the Trees of Light, so when those were extinguished...well, it was a very tense time."

"But the first kindling of the sun and the moon..." He shook his head, walking through the memory of it in his head again, and his smile was bright, yet wistful. "Elves as a whole fell in love with Varda all over again."

At the mention of his falling in battle, he looked a little sheepish. "I wasn't always like this, you know. In fact, I became like this because I fell in battle."

He gave a brief rundown of the events that led to his death. The invasion of Gondolin, the fighting in the streets, falling back to the Tower, being ordered to cover the escape of Idris, Tuor, and their son, as they led the surviving citizens to safety, covering the retreat, being ambushed by a large party of orcs lead by a Balrog, then fighting the Balrog to the death, before being dragged to his own by the dying Balrog.

"Namo, the Doomsman of the Valar, told me that it was my self-sacrifice that made my spiritual power stronger. When I was reborn, the Maiar considered me at their level, which...still amazes me," Glorfindel said. Then he grinned. "Now, yes, I could take down a Balrog with a lot less worry for myself, thanks to the gifts Manwe gave me when I became...when I took on a job for the Valar." Champion of the Valar was more of a career than a job, but it was one of those things he didn't speak of often because people looked at him differently. "That was a few years ago, of course."