capsicle1919 | (no subject)

(no subject)

*post-battle (genetically-engineered pterodactyls, really?), Steve arrives via helicopter back at the Tower, hops out and gives a tired wave to Natasha and Clint as they power down, makes his way inside and down the elevator to the debriefing room, which is not, in fact, where they are debriefed - that happens at SHIELD - but rather where they shower and change, and so named because Tony decided it's where they are de-briefed, and Steve's never been able to think of it as anything else, goddammit*

Hey. *nods at Bruce, who is drinking a gallon of Gatorade, passes him by and heads straight for the showers, leaning his shield against the wall, starts stripping out of his damaged, blood-spattered uniform*

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*gets a glass of milk and chugs it, swallowing quickly, finishes up and licks his lips, puts the glass in the sink* I think Natasha baked some cookies. *looks at Tony, little smile* You finished your sandwich, so you should have a couple.

*laughs* My reward for being such a good boy? *hops off the counter, waggles his eyebrows* I can think of better ones.

*rolls his eyes* I bet. *picks up his sandwich, takes a bite, a little rivulet of mayo at the corner of his mouth*

*blinks, stares at him for a beat too long, then steps in close, swiping his thumb across the corner of Steve's lips and bringing it to his own mouth, sucks it off, maintaining eye contact, grins wickedly at Steve around his thumb* Messy.

*lets the moment hang for a moment, then drops his hand and claps Steve on the shoulder, bouncing a little on the balls of his feet* Now c'mon, are we going to do this thing or what!

*nearly chokes on his last bite of sandwich, forces himself to swallow and looks at Tony, startled, did he really just do that, he'd underestimated how much Tony enjoys getting him riled up* All right. *clears his throat* Let me just clean up. *puts their dishes in the sink, turns off the light and follows Tony to the elevator*

*studies Steve as the elevator climbs to R&D* Do you feel more secure in the grip of your left hand or your right? *pauses* Not an innuendo. *smiles*

Tony... *sighs* I favor my left. My ma said I was born a lefty but the nuns made me be right-handed. Said left-handedness was unnatural. *snorts* I guess I missed Jesus's monologue on the evils of people who use their left hands to do stuff.

*barks out a laugh* Amen, etcetera. *gives him a thumbs up as the doors open, strides out into his kingdom* But when I said grip, I meant grip -- like, which hand would you want to hang on with and which would you rather have free? *frowns* Which hand would I rather have free. Huh. *snaps at Dummy, points at a pile of rusted (bloody) pieces of old armor on a table he told Dummy to clean up this morning* Hey, this your new art project or something, or are you gonna do what we talked about?

*is momentarily distracted by Tony's laugh, it's a real one, sincere, and it's because of Steve and for a second he feels like it might be his greatest achievement, making Tony Stark laugh for real* Uh - right. I'd rather have my right hand free. I throw with it. *mimics swinging his shield*

Right. *looks at him for a long moment, trying to figure out how to test this* ...Okay, I think I lied before about talking this out. We've gotta try it first, otherwise how're we going to know what the gaps are, what's needed and what'd be extraneous. *sucks at his teeth, thinking, then nods* Yep. That's it. Okay. You left a jacket here once, it's in the closet there, go grab it, it gets kinda chilly the further up you go -- though, uh, I guess you'd know that, crap, sorry, okay, yeah, I'm just gonna go -- suit up. *feels like an ass, snatches up two bracelets and snaps them on*

*gives Tony a funny look, but goes and gets the jacket, truth is he's a little thrilled that he's going to go flying with Tony, he's only ever been in a plane, but Tony looks so free and Steve would, for once, like to know what that's like* I think this is my favorite version of the armor yet.

*the suit flies out at him, unfolding as it goes, latching and clicking and whirling around his torso, his arms, his legs, looks up at Steve when he says that, kind of startled that Steve has opinions about his suits, and smiles brilliantly once it sinks in* Thanks, Steve. *the helmet builds itself around his head but he doesn't close the faceplate yet* Right, so. C'mere, let's figure this out.

Where do you want me? *regrets it the instant he says it, because he's just given Tony the key to the city, if the city is flirting and making Steve miserable* I mean, tell me where to stand. *gruffly*

*cackles a little but lets it go, beckons Steve to stand to his right* Right, so. Obviously you've gotta imagine this with the shield, but -- don't be shy, get on up here, see what's most convenient to hang onto. I'll hold onto you at first, we'll figure out once we're up there if we can test out me letting go. PS, I'm way faster than gravity, so if you fall I'll totally catch you. *grins*

Okay... *steps up on to one of the armored boots, feels around and finds a place he can grip, on the back of Tony's shoulder, bounces once, testing his grip, his footing* I think I'm good.

Yeah, you are. *the mask snaps shut, eyes glowing, and wraps his arm tightly around Steve's waist* Here we go. JARVIS? *and he takes off, the skylight opening a split second before they reach it, and then they're in the air and climbing*

*the train is roaring through the mountains, there's snow stinging his face, he clings to the side of the destroyed car, staring down into the chasm, he can hear Bucky screaming, and for a second he goes completely tense, his eyes squeezed shut, doesn't realize his fingers are actually denting Iron Man's armor*

Whoa -- *stops in midair, just hovering, looks at him, worried* Hey, buddy, you're squashing me a little. Steve, look at me, you're all right, come on.

*it takes a good couple of minutes but now that they're stopped, and it's only the wind, he relaxes a bit and opens his eyes* Sorry. *a little breathless, swallows hard* Sorry. Just- Got a little inside my own head for a minute, there. I'm good. I'm good. *looks at Tony, who is not Bucky, Tony is alive and well and Steve hasn't failed him*

You wanna go back? *the mask opens and he meets Steve's eyes, his expression serious* We can go back.

No! No, I- I probably needed to do that, Tony. *looks at him* I gotta face some of this stuff, or I'm useless in the field. *Tony looks genuinely concerned, his eyes dark and frantic, and Steve can't help it, he taps Tony's cheek with a finger* C'mon, let's go, Tony. Stand clear of the closing doors. *lopsided grin, still unsteady but sincere*

*laughs, jostles Steve a little with his hip* Yes, sir. *the mask snicks closed again* Buckle up. *secures his grip on Steve, tells JARVIS to monitor him and warn him of significant distress, and then takes off again over the city*

*it's better this time, he keeps his eyes open so he can see the red and gold of Tony's armor, and he knows exactly where he is and it's fantastic, he's soaring over New York and it's bright and blinding, he laughs involuntarily because he just can't keep it inside, no wonder Tony does this*

*grins and spins into a barrel roll, letting out a whoop as he does so, it's been ages since he just flew around for the joy of, and it's kind of awesome all over again, seeing it through Steve's eyes*

Jesus Chri- *yelps and holds on, forces himself to keep his eyes open even though he's dizzy as hell, and he's reminded of every single time he threw up on a roller coaster* Fuck, Stark! *calls out, laughing*