ᴀɴᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀɴ ᴇᴄʜᴏ ғᴀʀ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ( ᴏᴘᴇɴ )

[uprightness]

Who: steve rogers and alla you
Broadcast: no
Action: planetside, starstruck
When: throughout march

 >

shops;

[ well that's all kinds of eerie isn't it? steve used to see scenes in his nightmares during the war. the world left behind and no people left to reside in the pretty houses with the vast lawns. you could find him in the store, frowning at the selection and the lack of dust or decaying products. you might see him pick up a box of ice cream or browsing through a book.

either way, he'll always go through the register, punch it open and leave some credits inside. at the very least, the price tags are still on, too. ]

abandoned theme park;

[ he didn't mean to go in at all, just to look around and see if the place is as abandoned as all the other places around the planet. as soon as walks in, a nearby ride lights up and starts working. you might see the infamous frown return' ]

--- straight out of a stephen king book.

[ from eerie to creepy in last than five minutes ]

video rentals;

[ so once one makes do with the eerie atmosphere of the place, it does offer some nice selections especially if you happen to be a film lover. he quickly gave up on the cinema but he could be found looking through the videos, putting away romantic comedies and space dramas until he comes upon a battered copy of Jaws. ]

--- who left you behind?

[ and now see him start looking more closely at the titles. maybe he could find some more earth ones that he'd actually like.

he's not big on angry sharks. ]

starstruck;

[ for any ship-action needs ♥ ]

Comments

[wingedman]

[It's probably weird to see Sam in the middle of the shops fully kitted out in combat gear, with his flight harness and the shield on his back - and with a basket stuffed full of food hanging from one arm. But this place is creepy, and he wants to be ready for any trouble.

Even if it looks like he's about ready to make lasagna. He glances up at Steve and starts mentally doubling the recipe.]

You think this is actual ground beef from cows, or like...space ground beef?

[uprightness]

I guess we're going to find out tonight.

[ he peeks into the basket and puts his own loot in, some ice cream, a few apples and a box of something that looks like fried chicken but could really be anything. ]

you've seen the robots? stark would have something to say about alla that.

[ probably that he could better. steve is pretty sure that would be a truth, too. ]

[wingedman]

[Sam just shrugs, a little philosophically.] Long as the taste is close enough.

[Excuse you, mister. Sam just gives him a look and starts transferring everything to a nearby cart, left in the middle of an aisle. At least nobody will care if he pushes a grocery cart down the street to one of the houses to cook - and creepy as it is, he's going to take advantage of having a full size kitchen and not the tiny galley aboard the Starstruck.]

I think the robots took over, personally. They're just waiting for us to become complacent enough, and then-

[He makes a 'pew pew' laser noise and grins. Yeah, he's just joking. Mostly.]

[uprightness]

I think we had enough of that when Ultron showed up. You really missed out. he had a striking personality.

[ he's as dry as the desert, really. steve isn't excited to think about robot violence and uprising, especially as it's yet to be determined if those are also the fiends behind their kidnapping. ]

let's just make sure to go back before it gets dark.

[ and something tries to eat them. the whole thing seems like a horror novel. ]

[wingedman]

Uh-huh. I really missed out on saving the world that time. Damn shame, passing up an opportunity to get my ass killed by robots.

[Guess who's equally dry? But at least the roombas should be easier to defeat. You know, theoretically.]

You're gonna rush my lasagna? [Sam makes a mock tsk, tsk noise.] Can't rush perfection, Steve.

video rentals »

[mucked]

[ for the most part, peggy's only here at steve's behest. but perhaps 'behest' is too strong a word for the hang-dog eyes and the syrupy voice he'd used to lure her off their ship and onto this strange abandoned planet.

and into a place whose whole existence is to facilitate people gorging themselves on cinema. she sighs, mock bored, while she flicks through titles. unrecognizable film after unrecognizable film. when steve speaks up, however, she glances over her shoulder. ]

What was that--?

[ obviously, he must have been talking to her. only lunatics talk to movies. ]

[uprightness]

I know this one.

[ he says with a note of pride. it took him months to become familiar with some of the more familiar titles of the 20th century. those people would call 'classics'. ]

it's from earth, definitely not from around here. it came out in the 70s and was kinda famous. it's about a shark that eats people.

[ ... ]

quality cinema, I know.

[mucked]

From Earth?

[ now, that's interesting. far far more interesting than the video's content. peggy abandons her exploration and passes through an aisle, and then another, just to hover behind his shoulder and snag a look at this particular item. ]

You're certain? [ of course he is. peggy frowns. ] How the devil did that happen?

[uprightness]

Pretty certain. It's not just similar, it's identical. I remember the name of the direction and some of the actors.

[ he passes her the little plastic box and scans the shelves for a long moment, searching for - what? it's hard to say. until - ]

there's another one.

[ he reaches above his head and takes out a dusty copy of snow white and the seven drawrfs. he knows the red ribbon and the cartoon face. ]

remember that one?

[mucked]

[ her hand finds the small of his back. the shop is otherwise deserted; there's no harm in providing a spark of contact. peggy sidles closer, leaning her cheek against his arm, while he shows of his latest offering. ]

Good God. [ she'd been young, then. with different adventures in mind. peggy's free hand reaches for the title, flipping it gently between her fingers once she takes it from steve. ]

I do. [ she bites her bottom lip, quarreling over a memory. ] I actually went to the cinema for this one. A rare, rare occasion.

[ -- just don't ask her with who, steve rogers. ]

theme park

[reconstitution]

[ Well, this isn't the first time the two of them have been to a park like this together, but it's definitely the first time the rides have started on their own just by walking past them. Bucky casts a sidelong look at Steve before his eyes started darting around the park, looking for anyone responsible for it. Of course there's no one, but an entire planet can't just be abandoned. It's fishy, and he'll trust it about as far as a small Steve Rogers could throw it.

So. Not at all. ]

Read much Stephen King? Doesn't seem like your type of book.

[uprightness]

Peggy read It a couple of months ago and nearly broke my nose over it. I don't think she'd ever want to see the film.

[ steve himself read the Mist and that was more than enough, thank you. he looks at the rides with an arched eyebrow. ]

if there's a fun house, I'm not walking in.

[ those were weird enough when he wasn't worried about something attacking them. ]

[reconstitution]

Oh yeah? [ There's only a slight pause. ] She still have it, or did she give it back to Winchester?

[ Bucky continues strolling leisurely through the park next to Steve and hums thoughtfully. ]

I didn't know you were a chicken, Rogers. [ Where is your sense of adventure? ]

[uprightness]

I'm pretty sure she gave it back. I offered to toss it out the airlock but she wouldn't hear of it.

[ he lifts both arms in surrender. ]

I've never liked clowns. or fun houses. and after nearly getting my nose broken because of them, I think I have the right to boycott them for a while. I wouldn't mind the spinning tea cups, though.

[reconstitution]

You almost got your nose broken because of a clown?

[ He blinks, brow furrowing as he tries to remember if that's something he witnessed. ]

Spinning tea cups I think we can manage. Saw them over this way. [ He nods to their right. ]

shops

[outstandingbalance]

Are you really paying for that? Seems a little pointless.

[There's humor in Natasha's voice. Something almost indulgent. Always a boy scout, Rogers?]

Just gonna go to waste if you leave it on the shelve anyway.

[uprightness]

Do you see anything here that's gone to waste? it's all fresh. maybe they only come out when no one's watching.

[ he'd rather think they're dealing with extremely shy beings than with something sinister. it would cause fewer headaches. ]

and if there's any chance of that, it seems rude not to pay.

[ so he puts some credits in, stacked nice and tidy in the register. ]

[outstandingbalance]

You really think that? All of this is just... shy locals? If they cleared out when we showed up, it's not because they're hiding from us. Not like that, anyway.

[It's because they ran the second they found out the Fleet was headed their way. Best case scenario, this is an evacuation.]

[uprightness]

I rather think that. I've had enough of people trying to eat us, exploding planets or war of the world scenarios.

[ he's definitely getting too old for all of this. ]

let's try and be optimistic. I know you can manage it when you want to. go on, romanoff. you must have some good news to tell me.

theme park.

[rebuildyourruins]

[The place is already creepy enough without automatic whirring contraptions starting up. It doesn't help that Thor, despite his legitimately improved knowledge of Earth stuff, doesn't actually know what a theme park is.

The rollercoaster seats that just swung up on the tracks nearby with their safety bars also remind him too much of Sakaar, so Thor's giving it some serious side-eye right now.]

Is this Stephen King well-versed in such places?

[Who would try to be an authority on weird rail chairs. Who does that.]

[uprightness]

He likes to write about innocent things that turn horrible. he writes horror books. Peggy read one the other month about a clown who eats people. spooked her enough to nearly break my nose.

[ in all honesty, it would be better for everyone if this has nothing in common with any Stephen King novel. ]

he likes to write things that scare people.

[rebuildyourruins]

It sounds like a dire topic to write tales about.

[Unless the horrible things get defeated at the end. Thor stops scowling at the roller coaster to give Steve a confused look.]

Wait - why would reading a book make her do that? [...] Were you dressed as a clown?

[Clearly there's no better explanation for this.]

[uprightness]

Not really my thing.

[ no, he wasn't dressed as a clown, thor, god. ]

scary books and movies make people jumpy. most people startle rather than break someone's nose but peggy's always been exceptional. she taught me how to throw a good right hook, you know.

[ oh no, here comes sentimentality. ]

video rentals

[paraclete]

[Accustomed to wandering, Kaworu's content to drift through any eerie atmosphere. He contributes to it himself, even, inadvertently—he's ghostly at best. When the air is already dim and spooky, Kaworu's gentle face just looks like wistfulness and nostalgia and white death.

He's still the smiling sort, though. He's been gliding around in here, his footsteps cotton-soft, observing this and that. Now he tilts into Steve's line of sight, and then tilts further into the shark's. Kaworu's curious and friendly, even if he's in equal turns hands-off and impartial. When he comes to see what Steve is looking at, he goes up on his toes in a sort of quiet satisfaction...

He is less impartial when he remarks,] It's a little cute. [The shark, he means, of course. Oh, of course.]

[uprightness]

...I don't think they were going for cute.

[ just saying. steve's pretty sure he'd seen this guy around but there are so many people in the fleet, some days it's hard to tell. he's fabled to have a really good memory and not for nothing, though. he knows this one has been with them for a while. ]

I'm pretty sure they wanted to make the shark scary. a bit unnatural, they're just animals. still.

[ horror movie, right? ]