driftfleet | [open] august starstruck mingle

thank you - I think.

[ wait, hold on - ]

How come? My taste has always been just fine.

[ he has, apparently, no idea why anyone would think otherwise. ]

I mean, most people say it's a little old-fashioned, but.

[ he shrugs. can't really blame a fella. ]

I've seen your uniform. The old and the new. [ a smirk, delivered over her shoulder as she shifts the basin and the razor and the used towel to a desk. his desk, yes. ] Someone else might have designed them -- but you're the one who wore them.

[ wore. except! except she's seen him with scissors and fabric and all sorts. so another hook is baited -- and she waits in silence to see if he'll spill beans about what he's been working on locked up by himself. ]

[ steve wince is telling enough. the uso tour uniform was truly hideous. he was simply glad they didn't include that in the exhibit. as for the new one - the new ones - ]

there were others. they kept changing it. it's a good stealth suit.

[ he sighs. well. someone ought to see it. Natasha had only seen a part of her process - it had worried her. he had worried her. he imagined they all thought he'd be back to do it all one day. captain america, the suit and the shield. ]

When I first woke up, they told me they upgraded it. Never thought it might come in handy but - they said the world could use something old fashioned.

[ he says 'they' so he wouldn't have to talk about coulson and his death and his vintage cards. ]

[ they. oh, how she's come to resent this concept of a they. whoever they are, whatever their interest in captain america's cult of personality, she can't much abide by 'their' counsel.

but she watches the wince and decides to proceed carefully. ]

There's nothing stealthy about a star emblazoned on your chest.

I guess they needed a symbol, the world needed hope.

[ and captain america was apparently better at installing hope in the hearts of men than iron man or the hulk. he gets up, walks to his closet and brings it out. the star they spoke about is gone, the stripes as well. the colors are all dyed over. it's the same stealth suit, surely. only different, black and lacking the symbols of his legacy. ]

But you're right.

[ nothing too stealthy about it. ]

[ they needed a symbol. but what did steve need? her lips purse, but she keeps her peace as best she could.

instead, peggy invests her attention into the modified uniform. a bit dark, yes, but utterly tactical. there is a kind of warm nostalgia to the stars and the stripes, but that's exactly why she finds it so galling. steve shouldn't have to carry the weight of america's halcyon days on his shoulders. he's a man; he's not a symbol. ]

-- Show me.

[ she nods toward the suit as she makes her demand. she wants to see it on him. ]

[ steve understand one simple truth. whatever he does now, with this suit, would be his own. the days of captain america have finally come to an end. a man and not a symbol, that's one hell of a new way to live.

her words snap him out of it rather quickly. he looks at her, arches an eyebrow. surely, she'd seen it. well not exactly in its current colors but.

but, in the end, it wasn't a request. there's something terribly enticing when she forms her demand, he obliges her before he realizes it. it's a quick process. to many others, the suit is a maze of clasps but steve knows it all to well after so many years. slipping it on is as simple as discarding civilian clothing ( pulling his shirt off by the collar, stepping out of his trousers, attending to all the clasps ). it's a minute or two and the job is done. ]

well?

[ well obviously she must have an opinion. ]

[ for a heartbeat -- just a heartbeat -- she thinks he might refuse her. she think she might have pressed him a foot too far: the beard, the ring, the costume. she's ever and always waiting for that moment where she asks for too much and he refuses. heaven knows, it's overdue. but she keeps pushing boundaries and he keeps obliging her.

so she leans back against the corner of his desk and watches him oblige. it's no rare sight; it isn't as though he doesn't get changed for the day or for the night with some frequency within the confines of their shared room. but this time, it's different. this time, she watches without hesitation.

and she wonders just how tricky those clasps might be in fingers that aren't so accustomed to doing and undoing them. her fingers twitch at the thought. ]

Striking. [ indeed, she admires him unabashedly. ] But now I'm trying to picture how it might have looked had you kept the beard.

[ she can't let him down easy, it seems. at least not if her impish smile is anything to go by. ]

Well.

[ he takes a step closer but doesn't do much else. A year ago, steve would have flushed bright pink at the very thought of her eyes on him. These days, he welcomes the notion without much shame. ]

I could simply stop shaving. In a couple of weeks we could try again.

[ he takes her teasing with grace, she thinks. each and every encounter further acclimatizes him to their relationship -- stripping away the bits and pieces that used to make him flounder. even in this, she can see his easy and comfort with the situation.

after all, he approaches. only a by a step -- but he approaches all the same. peggy stays put, although her chin does lift. her eyes find his. ]

I hardly think it's necessary. [ ... ] My imagination is quite capable of filling in those blanks. Thank you very much.

Really?

[ funny, this is the first time he is wearing the suit in its current rendition and it's not to save anyone or anything. Instead, it's almost selfish. Steve's hands rest over her hips but when he tugs her closer it's so very gentle. He doesn't pull her into a passionate exchange as he'd done the night of his return. Instead, he does what he had wanted to do for the better part of an hour. He wraps her in his arms, holds her close in a quiet embrace.

For a moment, he does nothing, nothing at all but feeling her presence and inhaling her perfume. ]

Didn't know you were so imaginative.

[ well. it's been a damn long while since she's been this near to him wearing the uniform -- any uniform, really, barring the one that had cropped up in his calibration space. it's enough to steal away the leading edge of her breath. peggy swallows hard before she returns his hug. her arms slide under his and her fingers knot behind his back. ]

Oh, darling, you have no idea.

So, seeing you have such a keen sense for it, how about helping me painting this wall? Seems like the right time.

[ with furniture moving about and the mood still a little gloomy. it feels like a worthy enough distraction. and perhaps it was his project but she's the one with the very good imagination, after all. ]

I'll need a bit more paint. I bet ya there's something on the planet.

[ -- well! it certainly isn't what she'd meant to imply. but count on steve to subvert implication. she could almost (almost!) smile. ]

Only in bulk. [ she manages his expectations, not least of all because she's not keen to be roped into this activity. ] And the room might be bigger, but I'm not interested in stocking it to the gills with paint cans.

I bet we can find somewhere that will sell us a few cans and not force us to buy forty of them. It's just a matter of asking nicely.

[ what. people seem to agree to just about everything when he goes about asking nicely. ]

come on, it'll be fun.

Are you suggesting that going somewhere and being nice to someone is a proper idea of fun? Because I'm afraid you and I might indeed have very different definitions thereof.

[ she knows they don't, in the end. at least -- not always. but she'll make her digs when she can. ]

Come on.

[ he takes half of a step back, just so he can look at her. ]

think about it. we can buy a few more things for this space while we're out. we'll make a day of it and then we can paint the wall. seems like a good way to celebrate.

[ by doing hard labor. go figure. ]

[ her eyes narrow. ]

Celebrate what exactly?

[ as innocently as you please: ]

the new room, what else?

[ :) ]

[ peggy shakes her head, mock-exasperated. there's no downtime; just when something turns sweet and safe, they manage to turn sharply back into the old comfortable arguments.

it's lovely. peggy loves it. just as she loves him. ]

Oh, please. It's hardly worth a bloody celebration.

I dunno.

[ how surprising it is that he disagrees. ]

We did save up for it. We have more room now. You've two closets. It can do with a bit of celebration.

[ she's got two closets? again, she shakes her head -- but doesn't see fit to correct him. one of those closets is his, although peggy isn't prepared to invite that particular brand of smugness onto his face by reminding him to. ]

Interior decorating isn't really my idea of a celebration.

Really?

[ he arches an eyebrow ]

alright then. now that we've determined that we need one. what is your idea of a celebration?

[ look she just went ahead and agreed to have one. he knows how to seize a chance. ]

[ oi! she's agreed to nothing of the sort. or so suggests her scowl. ]

A drink. [ then, giving ground. ] A nice dinner, perhaps. Not at the bistro; I'll not suffer through Mister Jarvis's hovering.

We could do that. alright, it's a deal.

[ have they been bargaining all this while? he seems to think so. he actually seems quite happy with this supposed agreement. ]

painting the wall shouldn't take too long, then we could go out and have some dinner. we'll make a day of it.

[open] august starstruck mingle

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