penistower | Entries tagged with steve rogers

He knows Steve still doesn't get him. Maybe he doesn't need to. The man was a lot different than the one he'd expected to pop out of the ice anyway, ready made to validate his every fear. That had been naive, sure, but the betrayal still comes as something of a shock. Not because he thinks he deserves better, but because he thought that Steve was better than this. That he knew what teammates really meant.

Tony's been wrong about a lot of things in his life, but to date being wrong about Steve Rogers hurts the most. He knows that's his own fault too -- he had put Steve up on a pedestal rather than regarding him as an equal. They had fought at the Barton's farm and only barely made up. Things are falling apart, and he can't be the only mender anymore.

The phonecall comes late on a Sunday, though not so late that it's crossed over into early again. He just needs to hear this once, in the other man's voice. It isn't about blame, but it is a make-or-break moment.

speedboat

He steps out of the cryogenic tube that had been preserving him all these years and the past slaps into him like a ton of bricks. Unsurprisingly, he wasn't thinking about much while in cryosleep, but now his brain is trying to catch up on 70 years of paralysis and it isn't pretty. Howard falls to his knees, blind to everything else in the room as he clutches his head, memories whirring by him like slides on a projector screen. When he finally manages to look up, the image of Steve in his mind merges with the technicolor version of the man standing over him. Wait -- what? His head whips around to look at the tube he'd come from and then back up at Steve. This is either real or he's in limbo right now, and he never could get himself to believe in the afterlife, so here they are. Truth is always stranger than fiction, isn't it?

"What's cookin', good-lookin'?" tumbles out even as he reaches for Steve's pantleg to get himself up. As nice as it is to see him, he can't make sense of it yet so may as well gloss right over it with jokes.

letmetakeaselfie

Rhodey is distracting the government types long enough for Tony to hack into the airspace and make sure none of this is being recorded. He loops the moments before the Milano pierces the atmosphere and plays them back, knowing by the time he's out of the system and they figure it out they won't be able to prove it was anything but a technical malfunction. He does all of this from his phone as he stands near the landing pad with Steve flanking his side. He's trying to do things right this time -- no more lone gunslinger act, as Pepper had phrased it.

He looks over his sunglasses at the spaceship as it decompresses, wondering who he's just invited over for dinner. Hopefully they're friendly... When the platform descends it really is just like Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He can't help but geek out a little. He'd technically met space aliens before, and Asgardians, etc. but somehow this is way cooler. "Welcome to Earth and please watch your step, we don't have liability insurance yet."

letmetakeaselfie

It was harder for him to let go of having Steve around than he'd thought. It had only been a few weeks he'd stayed at the Tower, but he had really gotten used to him being there. And then it became a moot point as he sold the Tower and started spending time in Connecticut with Pepper and her mom. The little house they'd bought to get away from everything had somehow turned into Home. Just a quiet slice of New England that Tony once thought was for anyone but him.

He hears Steve's bike rumbling outside and runs out like a kid whose best buddy is coming over. Not such an inaccurate comparison really. He's wearing a beat up looking t-shirt with Nat's black widow symbol on it and loose-fitting jeans. He always tries to pick up merch that isn't for himself, Bucky or Hulk when he sees it. "Hey, buddy, you made it." He takes a spin on the top porch step to indicate to Steve he should look around. It's a plain Colonial from the outside with a little bolt of land. He and Pepper have been landscaping recently judging by freshly cut shrubs and big hydrangea bushes.

"We've got iced tea, you want iced tea?" Tony claps Steve on the shoulder and leads him inside the second he's near. The front door opens up to zig-zag stairs with a big glass wall in the center Tony implanted with led lights. Right now they're flashing red, white, and blue for Steve of course. The furnishings are rustic and the place looks good and lived in. There's a big tank full of goldfish by the window in the living room to their right, a big fireplace taking up most of the room with mismatched hearthstones that look to be hand-picked.

"I'll get us some tea, then we'll go down to the workshop." Tony moves to the left and into the kitchen. It's open and airy, big french doors leading out to the back deck in the center. He pours them two glasses, pressing one into Steve's hand and taking a sip from his as he tries to gauge the other man's reaction. "You didn't have to come all the way out here. I could've met you at Headquarters." He's pleasantly surprised Nat and Bucky let him out for a whole day on his own, actually.

billionaires

The Tower is a frenzy, the way it has been every year since Steve Rogers returned to the land of the living on July the 4th. No matter how much and how often the man insists that Tony and everyone else just celebrate as usual and leave his birthday out of it... well. He's ignored. Loudly. And with many, many fireworks.

Tony had always loved the holiday and gone all out with lavish parties all as an excuse to show off his pyrotechnics, but even he took it to a whole other level when the element of Steve's birthday came into play. Pepper and Rhodey are hard at work in the kitchen and there are people absolutely everywhere. All with garish red, white and blue clothes of course.

He mills about the party making sure everyone is well hydrated and well fed, all while carrying around a beer he doesn't seem to be drinking but rather nursing all night long. There's also a stage he's set up so everyone can tell their favorite Captain America stories, which hands down, Bucky is winning. He's putting in a good effort though.

And they all end on the rooftop with apple pie and the stupidest fireworks ever. Ones that flash in LED lights and spell USA and form Cap's shield. Any ludicrous thing you could think of.

relicta

This is it -- the house of cards she constructed come tumbling down. She knew it would happen, really she did, but somehow she'd convinced herself it wouldn't be for a long time. That they had all the time in the world to just play house. This is her fault and she's letting Tony take the rap for it. She's always been a coward when it came to feelings, but she can't imagine how Steve must be feeling now.

She watches him go by in a blur of color, and she makes her choice, following him into the room though she stops herself at the doorway. She's probably the last person he wants to see, but they had become connected so long ago it would be impossible for her to turn her back on him now.

"I feel like Mom and Dad are fighting," she jokes ineffectually, her face falling even as she moves to sit on the edge of his bed, green eyes watching him like a hawk for any tiny move he makes.

relicta

Natasha is exhausted. So much more than the bone-tiredness and broken-heartedness of her return from Sokovia. No, this is much, much worse.

She's been in front of every security council all the way up to the top, private and public courts both. Just when she thinks it's over they have one more question, they stretch things on one more day. She thinks of Steve often; always, but they took away her phone on day one. She has no idea what's changed, though she told herself she wouldn't go back to their little shack. He has to decide to come out of the shadows for himself -- she's done all she can.

They finally release her, and she can't put this black site behind her quickly enough. Fury is in the pick-up car. His silence is worse than all the interrogations combined so she looks out the window and tries to shut her brain off.

She's essentially dumped out onto the curb in front of her shitty little apartment and it's all she can do not to lose it right there. If it weren't for Liho she wouldn't even go up, but she needs to know if he's still there.

The first thing she hears is a piercing meow and she sighs a breath of relief even as she pushes open the door that was already ajar, lock hanging off the frame. Natasha puts a hand on her sidearm and wades into what she's sure is a mess. All of her cabinets and drawers are off the hinges, the contents poured out on the floor like much care was taken to categorically destroy her every belonging. She feels nothing for this place, but anger stews somewhere below the surface anyway. Because she knows what they're looking for -- who. It makes her stomach tie itself in knots even as she plucks a tuna can off the tile and opens it for her poor cat.

"Sorry I'm so shitty," she sighs, turning on her heel to find a bag for her clothes, knowing none of her weapons will be here. She doesn't even bother to look. Nat stuffs essentials into a duffle bag and pulls out a simple outfit of jeans and a striped hoodie jacket from under the rubble of her former life. After taking the coldest, most efficient shower ever, she combs her hair into a low-hanging ponytail and puts on some lipstick. That always inexplicably makes her feel better, even at her lowest.

Locating the cat carrier somewhere at the bottom of a closet, she carefully sneaks up on the still-somewhat-feral cat and slips the bag over his head before scooping him up and zipping it shut without an incident. She pops her duffle over one shoulder and carries Liho in her other arm like precious cargo, ready for anything even as she boards the subway in a beeline for Stark...no. Avengers Tower. It's the only place they can't get to her, even if the last person she wants to rely on is Tony now. She's still mad at Clint even if it's dumb. She can't go back to the farm and risk his family anyway.

After fielding a really long conversation with a homeless guy and putting up with more than her fair share of staring, Natasha makes it to Manhattan. She all but runs to a place she never thought she'd call home, but right now it's about the closest thing she's got. Gently setting Liho down, she begins hacking whatever new system Tony's put in place. A woman's voice startles her even as the door unlocks for her entry, swinging open a few inches so she can catch the door in one hand. "You could have just used your code, Agent Romanoff. He hasn't changed it."

This must be JARVIS' replacement. She picks the cat carrier back up and ducks inside before she can be noticed from the street, trying to ignore the rising tide of far too many emotions now. Tony didn't change her code. JARVIS is gone. Where is Steve? Is he safe? It's too much to worry for now, but if she's welcome here then she can at least sleep. She wants to sleep for days. She doesn't want to talk to or see anyone, least of all Tony and Pepper, who always have so many questions.

When the doors to the car spring open to the penthouse at last, she can't believe her eyes. Is she so sleep-deprived she's hallucinating? Her jaw falls slack, the clothes dropping like a stone to the floor when she loosens her grip on the bag. Liho of course, is stubbornly clenched in the other, and he lets out a loud mrrrrrow as if in greeting to Steve himself.

letmetakeaselfie

It isn't that he doesn't trust Natasha, it really isn't. Even the whole Natalie Rushman thing couldn't deter him from thinking of her basically as a little sister. Tony being who he is, he's been worried about her. Bruce leaving hasn't been easy on any of them, maybe most of all him, but they had something going on he still doesn't totally understand. And now she's MIA, which isn't that unusual actually, but again; Tony being Tony he can't just accept that. Clint and Laura don't want to talk to him except to say to leave Nat alone, but what if she's getting herself in danger? He can't judge her state of mind if he can't talk to her. That's where the stalking comes in.

J.A.R.V.I.S. probably wouldn't have helped him hack her phone, but F.R.I.D.A.Y. doesn't seem to have a problem with it. Maybe he's just imagining that -- but maybe they really do have their own artifical intelligence brand moral compasses. Now that JARVIS has merged with Vision, though, he thinks he has to be right. He used to relish in being right, now not so much.

There's one address that keeps coming through her GPS. He doesn't recognize it, and it's not that far. She isn't there now, according to her phone anyway, but there has to be something important there if she keeps going. He's no spy by trade, but that seems logical. Anyway, that's how he ends up in the middle of bumfuck (Binghamton) looking down at a ramshackle shack in the woods. It's like a horror movie except like usually with his life, it's real. So that's fun.

It's just about dusk and he drops down some distance away so he hopefully won't be detected. He puts the suit in sentry mode and creeps through the clearing like a cartoon character. His subtlety has never been very subtle, alright, but he tries. His curiousity is running rampant at this point, and he pops his head up to try and get a glimpse through the window. The curtains are drawn and there's barely a sliver of light from the waning sun that bounces off, creating a glare. Tony nearly jumps out of his skin when a large shadow moves across the window. There's someone in there. A big someone, by the sound of him. He and the suit move as quickly and softly as possible to the other side of the house in hopes that he can still get a good look at him somehow, or at least figure out what this place is.

letmetakeaselfie

Tony is nervous. Tony is always nervous, but tonight is compounded by all his paranoid fear brought to life by none other than SHIELD's meddling. After chance (if you can really believe that) running into Steve Rogers on the street, Tony had refused to do anything less than become fast friends with the other man, hellbent on unwinding this insane tapestry they're all tied up in, even if he has to do it thread by thread. He had been shocked when it was so easy to get Steve to agree to come to dinner at his house with his cobbled together family, at least at first. The more he spends time with the other man, the more he understands just how lonely he is.

Without Pepper he would have lost his mind several times over by now (and that's just tonight.) He's dressed casually in a linen shirt and jeans, seeming unbothered by the way the reactor shines brightly through the thin fabric. JARVIS announces Steve's arrival and he nearly jumps out of his skin, running a hand through his already hopelessly unruly hair as his gaze flashes to Pepper for one last nudge in silent guidance. Swallowing his nerves, he goes to the door, assured that JARVIS had brought Steve up to the penthouse as per Tony's earlier instructions (that the AI had chided him for repeating too many times. I'm a machine, sir. I'm not capable of forgetting.) He doesn't think he is either, anymore.

"H-hey," he greets, a little wild-eyed and more than starstruck (still) though he tries desperately to rein that part in. "Uh. Come in." He steps back and gestures vaguely, almost vibrating for how much this is affecting him.

relicta

They only bring her out when they need extra insurance, but never one to look a gifthorse in the mouth, Natalia is all too happy with the prospect of helping to keep S.H.I.E.L.D.'s most valuable asset in line. She's afraid to be too cheerful however, as though her own keepers didn't already know she preferred to be outside the facility, at least every now and then. She ties her hair into a tight bun with a red ribbon and gets in her little black car.

By the time she shows up at his apartment it's mid-evening, maybe 7 o'clock. She doesn't greet him at the door but rather barges in in that very Prussian way. She has thick black winged eyeliner on but no other makeup and under her calf-skin jacket are light barre clothes, her point shoes in one hand and plain white keds on her feet. When she speaks she speaks in a heavy Russian accent, though her annunciation makes her fairly easy to follow.

"Your agent told you I was coming for a sitting, yes?" A confirmation she doesn't seem to need as she turns away from him and moves to sit on his couch presumptuously, flicking off her sneakers and beginning to lace up her shoes.

letmetakeaselfie

[ tony gets to go home today. he couldn't be more relieved. more amazing is that steve is still around. he's still not over him showing up, bring him pie. captain america brought him pie. even his wildest fantasy dreams didn't compare to reality right now. they sent him home with vicodin that he's reluctant to take, but he has a tupperware of half a pie and steve is with him for the ride back to the tower with happy driving dutifully.

impulsively he reaches over and squeezes steve's bicep, offering up a soft smile behind his sunglasses, his head canted against the leather. he's never been so tired in his life, which is so totally stupid because he's been in that bed for so damn long. ] You don't have to stick around. I'm fine. [ even if pepper had to surprise fly to la today. she wouldn't have if it weren't important, he knows, but she'd also fly right back if she knew cap abandoned him. still, he can't help offering the man yet another out. ]

letmetakeaselfie

[ it's late by the time he catches up with steve, pepper finally sleeping peacefully in their treehouse. their treehouse. it feels surreal. wanda texted him earlier to tell him ~the news~ and here he is, one golden retriever in tow, afraid if he didn't bring digby with him that he might wake pepper. ]

I'm glad Prince--Wanda showed you your digs... [ oh yeah they're like biffles here. he knows that's weird. also that he built this treehouse for bucky actually. but then was going to give it to the other cap. this is already the third iteration of the man he's seen in as many months, not including that flame-on douchebag who seemed to share his face. this place was so weird. ]

Um, if it's missing anything. Let me know? I'll put it on the list. [ of the many many terrible things he has to do for this camp. he hadn't actually spoken to wanda yet so he wasn't sure what cap knew or when (where?) he was even from. he supposes it's time to find that out. ]

letmetakeaselfie

Tony had felt extremely out of the loop following everything. Between Clint and his family and all the team seeming to want nothing to do with him, he had more or less left it be. He and Pepper had had some major date nights to catch up on and Steve and Nat seemed busy training everyone besides. As much as he missed them... Well, frankly, he doesn't feel missed himself and so he stays out of it. At least, overtly.

There had been some interesting bit of intel he'd overheard at the party. Between the Falcon and Cap, no less. Steve's new friend he seemed to trust above the Avengers. Objectively, Tony couldn't fault it. But his gut twisted with the knowledge. He kept it to himself, however, getting to work on his own in secret. It doesn't take long to track down the Winter Soldier all things considered, but he doesn't dare spook him by letting him know he's found. He knows it's time to let Steve in on the secret, but he fears what the other man will think.

He invites him over under false pretenses, not like all their other circumstances hadn't been. They hadn't seen each other since Tony had left HQ, and though he knew a disgusting amount about Steve, no Captain America trivia will help him with this meeting. Tony jumps when F.R.I.D.A.Y. announces the arrival of Cap and his bike, trying to pull himself together enough to tell Steve he went behind his back one more time. Not like he's any stranger to the sensation, but no one seemed to think anything of betraying him and so neither did Tony in the end.

"Hey, pal," he greets warmly, clapping Steve on the shoulder as he shows him in. "How's... everything? Everyone. Do you want coffee? Or, we could order something." He's doing that nervous thing again. Tony swallows and waits for Steve to speak.

letmetakeaselfie

Tony sits at the counter and spins his stool -- back and forth, back and forth. It makes a little squeaking noise at the top every time, but he doesn't stop. Steve is putting the finishing touches on the pie crust, he can see him out of the corner of his eye. Wanda made him something weird earlier, but he had told her he'd eat it so he wasn't really paying attention. Probably something Sokovian made wrong knowing her. He loves her so he suffers etc. But Steve's baking is godly. He's really looking forward to this.

"You should cut a little star in the middle so it looks like your shield." This is obviously the greatest idea ever. When he finally stops spinning he realizes he is super dizzy and that was probably a mistake. He's really drunk, huh?

letmetakeaselfie

Is he sweating? He's pretty sure he's sweating, and probably profusely (gross.) Today is the day Pepper Potts moves in to Stark Tower and it's... terrifying??? Exciting?????? Both. Definitely both. Making sure Steve is standing by, he smooths down his hair for the millionth time and goes to receive her. "Hi," he says with a goofy smile, moving in to put a hand at her waist and kiss her cheek softly. This is suddenly real and it's very much freaking him out.

"Is this everything? We can get the rest for you. What about your fish?" Obviously she wouldn't bring her fish on the first trip. But he's getting into that nervous range where he blurts out all sorts of dumb things. He's just going to grab a bag and start carrying it for her. Much safer!!

billionaires

Tony had disappeared the night before, around six or so, and had been unreachable until now when he all but knocks the door down to his own penthouse. It's around 2 p.m. and his suit is creased, but despite this Tony looks remarkably well rested (go figure.) He immediately starts to whistle, bee-lining for the coffee pot though he stops to ruffle Steve's hair on the way. These days that dark, depressed, overworked Tony Stark is more or less absent, replaced by this bubbly cousin. It's no mystery why he's made an appearance and he certainly doesn't want to apologize for it.

Though he did do something quite rash while at Pepper's house last night, and this morning. Something that won't just affect him and Pepper, but Steve as well. He worries his lip as he pulls off his coat, followed by his suit jacket. In the light of day, it's hard not to feel like he's wearing the total walk-of-shame outfit. A 3-piece mid-afternoon just doesn't seem as classy as it did the evening before. He hits the button on the machine before greeting Steve properly, hoping he didn't worry him with his vanishing act and subsequent radio silence.

"Morning, Cap. How was your night?" It's transparent at best, but he's pretty sure Steve knows he doesn't mean any harm with his incessant cheer.

relicta

She can't keep the smirk off her face as Steve gets into the passenger's seat, like so many times before. Except this isn't like any times before, because this a real undercover mission. One she isn't completely sure he's ready for, or more to the point one he isn't sure he's ready for so she'll have to do a lot of validating him. Which isn't exactly her strong suit, as they'd found over the course of working together and admittedly growing much closer than she ever could have anticipated.

"I'm surprised Stark is letting you go for a whole month." But she sure isn't disappointed. Out of all the people she could be (and had been) fake married to? This might not be such a challenge to sell. Not that she's reading into that any, why bother.

starkella

Ever since Ella was young, it had made her feel safe. When she was upset, she would drag her pillows and blankets across the room and curl up next to the jungle mural her uncle had painted sixteen years ago. It's her birthday soon, the snow is coming down hard outside in the city. She traces one finger over the rhino's hoof and sighs, ear pressed against the lion's mane.

Her door is cracked, and she can hear footsteps. She holds her breath and hopes whoever it is can't tell that she's awake. They would only lecture her about sleeping again, but she can't. She doesn't want to, besides. If it were anyone but someone who belonged in the Tower, F.R.I.D.A.Y. would be sounding the alarm, but she can't help the way fear climbs up her throat anyway. She stays perfectly still and hopes it isn't one of the nosier ones.

necessitous

It's been several months since The Incident and he and Pepper both had been eager to put it in their rearview. With him reviving his father's long-dead corporation and Pepper flying around being a hero there hadn't been a whole lot of time to answer the big 'moving in' question. For the most part, he lived here, but he still had his apartments in LA and New York. But the Tower, that was something different. This would just be theirs.

And the Avengers', he hoped, if all went according to plan. Not wanting to come on too too strong, though, Tony had had Steve invited to the new base for... brunch? That was a casual meal, right? A.N.N.A. speaks up, signalling the soldier's arrival, if Tony hadn't been watching the monitors like a hawk anyway. Meeting your heroes is a big deal. People often said it was a mistake. But when he guy you've always idolized works alongside your girlfriend it's kind of a different story.

Tony wipes his clammy hands on his trousers and holds one out to shake while ANNA greets the Captain properly. Embarrassed, he realizes he's still wearing his glasses and tears them off with his free hand to deposit them into his shirt pocket. "I... uh. It is such an-- I mean. Do you have any allergies?" He hates himself.

letmetakeaselfie

Tony feels bad that he can't talk to Pepper anymore about this, and perhaps uncharacteristically he ends up picking up his phone and dialing the first person he thinks of. There aren't a lot of people he feels comfortable talking about anything personal with, but the facts are these. Bruce is gone, and Rhodey is almost too close in a way. He's not sure he's ready to tell him, and he feels almost like he broke some sort of truce with his best friend though this pregnancy was anything but planned.

"...Hey. Sorry. Are you busy?" Who picks up the phone with an apology? Oh lord, now Steve will definitely know something is off.