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closed » while the whole world was looking at you

Who: Peggy & Steve
Where: Diner
When: Afternoon, July 4th
Rating: PG-13ish
Summary: It isn't every day your ex-almost-boyfriend turns 100.
The Story:
[ simply put, peggy isn't one for birthdays. she'd dreaded her own, she'd ignored nearly everyone else's, and a year ago today she'd spent steve's furiously firing off shots at the range just to work out her heartbreak and her aggression. but she's come rather a long distance since last july 4th -- for one, she doesn't fly into an internal rage at the mention of his name.

for another, she truly does empathize with the man. having tony take the reins of your birthday celebrations is a rather dreadful experience. she knows so first hand. and although she hasn't been spending much time with steve since his arrival, she's been keeping close enough tabs that she knows where to find him. what? a girl can't be blamed for being observant. it's second nature to someone like her; taking quiet stock of his routine (as much as she's seen of them, at least) is as easy as breathing. even before she asks herself where he might be, peggy realizes she already has a hunch.

so she strides into the diner looking far cooler and more collected than she feels. it's been an emotional few weeks (and for him included, she imagines) but there's no reason to be shy in her approach. without so much as asking permission, she slides into the opposite side of his booth.

gently (almost reverently) she places a plain box on the table -- it sits a respectable distance from whatever pie he's eating. first things first. ]

Yours. [ her head lifts; her mouth hesitates its way towards a smile. ] If you want it.

[ she doesn't say the words. happy birthday, steve. ]

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[ He's not surprised when he sees Tony's post, or his room afterwards. It's Tony after all and he didn't think his birthday would come and go without some attention. Whether he was doing it because he actually wanted Steve to celebrate or because they were still on the rocks and he wanted Steve embarrassed was unclear.

So Steve had escaped to the diner. Better than staring at his red, white, and blue room. It just reminded him about what he wasn't anymore. A few people had wished him a happy birthday while he sat there reading a book with a coffee and a slice of pie, but no one stayed, until Peggy slid into the booth opposite him. Theres an immediate smile on his face and he's putting his book down on the seat next to him so she can have his full attention. ]

You didn't have to get me anything, Peg. [ But of course he's going to take it- it would be rude not to. He gestures to the top, can he? ]

[ her attention flits across his person -- from book, to pie, to smile. good heavens, his smile. peggy isn't prepared for it; it knocks the wind out of her sails, tosses her own expression into disarray, and she's left clearing her throat while he dilly-dallies over the gift box. she gestures with a hand -- go on, go on, open it.

it's a slim package. no bow, no ribbon, no card. just stiff paper and (once he opens it) a scrap of cloth to keep the gift nestled inside. it's a knife. an ibberson gravity knife, to be exact, and it's the same one peggy has been carrying on her person since her arrival in wonderland. patterned almost identically after the luftwaffe version, the ibberson had been standard issue for soe agents in the field. even after shifting to mi5 and later the ssr, peggy had preferred this pattern best. and she was never shy about that preference. ]

Call it an insurance policy. Of sorts. [ perhaps it's laughable to give a simple knife to the man who might very well be the best soldier who ever lived in their world or most others, but... ] As you've no doubt learned, the events here can sometimes play havoc with a person's natural and preternatural abilities both. If you're ever caught without all the serum has given you, Steve, I'd feel a lot better if you at least had good steel on your person.

[ good british steel. ]

[ It might be an odd gift by some people's standards but not to him. Its practical, its useful, and its protection. Steve was never someone who needed frivolous things, growing up he couldn't afford them and now, well, who had the time?

He took the knife out, turning it over in his hands, examining it. It was fine quality- not that he would expect anything less from Peggy. ]

Thank you, Peggy. This is swell. [ Because talking to Peggy Carter brought back all his old slang apparently. ]

It's a bit more than merely swell, [ she counters -- apparently not in the least bit afraid to up-sell her generosity and thoughtfulness. ] It was one of those that saw me through the war, you know. Nothing cuts through parachute cord like an Ibberson.

[ as if that was ever its only use. she sits back, pleased with herself, and offers up a little nod. ]

Besides, I'm certain it's a better gift than whatever tortures Tony might have devised.

[ That gets a laugh out of him. ] I’m sorry, much better than swell. It’s great Peggy really. [ a knife might have never been his weapon of choice but he more than knew how to handle one. So it was a great gift, especially for a place like this. ]

[ When she mentions Tony he lets out a groan, hand covering his face for a moment. ] There any possible way you didn’t catch his announcement on the network? [ Don’t watch those videos Peggy, just don’t. ]

I could lie if you like. [ she flags down a member of the waitstaff and politely (albeit stiffly) orders a cup of tea. black, of course. ] And tell you I didn't see a thing.

[ but the offer is answer enough: she'd watched everything. much to her surprise. and, at first, she'd been angry. not with tony, no, but with whatever devilish machinations had put steve in that position. ]

If it's any consolation, at least he didn't throw you an Iron Man themed party fit for a child. Nor did he insist on telling the network you were only turning seventeen, and therefore no one should give you so much as a drop of anything worth drinking.

[ her smile is slow. caught between affection for both him and tony. ]

I mean you could, we could just both pretend you never saw them. I mean, that would be best probably. [ He did them because they were supposed to help kids, and yes he knew how cheesy and terrible they were but he’d Committed and Captain America didn’t back out of his commitments. Not lightly anyway. ]

Well he couldn’t very well tell everyone I was a hundred and then also tell them I was underaged. There are a lot of eagle posters in my room, Peggy. [ He leaned forward, dropping his voice. ] I don’t even like eagles.

For you, a hundred is -- at the very least -- technically accurate.

[ what? she's allowed a minor swipe. surely. and she appears to enjoy it. her smile, although well-subdued, suggests as much. so too does the almost playful way in which she downright commandeers his plate of pie -- using one finger to pull the slice over to her side of the booth.

her chin dips. it's a rare moment when peggy's eyes dart away from his, but still! ]

Eagles, now, I never minded. [ look at what shield's logo became, after all. even peggy has to accept she must have had a hand in that decision. that there were parts of the ssr's architecture she felt was worth keeping. ] Surely there are worse birds to be thrown in with by association.

[ but it's not the point, is it? the point is that tony is an insufferable twat. ]

He did seem awfully fixated on your facial hair, however.

I’m no longer a nonagenarian, what do they call someone whose over one hundred? Old? [ He’s such a goof, but he’s just happy Peggy is comfortable enough to joke with him and steal his pie. His birthday pie no less. That’s just rude Peggy. ]

I suppose. He could have wall papered the room with turkey vultures...or dodo birds. [ That would be worse. Insufferable but it just shows he cares. ]

I don’t think he likes it all that much. I was going to shave but the longer I keep it the more offended he gets. [ Which is just funny at this point. ]

[ the next smile is hidden behind a mouthful of pie. as far as it being his birthday pie? well -- either her stealing it speaks volumes of how open she's grown to be in wonderland, or else it speaks instead of a deep and abiding affection for him. lingering on, like old growth, despite their altered circumstances.

her heart might have shot off in another direction but that doesn't make her spirit any less well-matched to his. as long as they're far away from tender topics and sensitive subjects, she relaxes around him. ]

I wager he's only sour you're giving his funny little beard a run for its money. [ ... ] Although, looking at you now, I'll admit it takes some getting used to.

[ he looks nothing like her best memories of him. but maybe that's a good thing. it helps lower her expectations a little. ]

[ Steve chokes back a laugh at that. ] Have you told him that he has a funny little beard?

[ because he can just picture the affront on Tony’s face. ]

It did for me too, but I think it’s kind of grown on me. [ No he didn’t even mean to make that pun joke. ] What do you think? Keep it or give in to Tony’s rants about it defying the laws of chaos theory?

[ he mayn't have meant it -- but her expression crinkles all the same. peggy refrains from commenting on it, just as she refrains from telling him just how often she takes a swipe at tony for his facial hair. it could be worst; it could be howard's.

...but everything grinds to a quick halt when he goes as far as to ask after her opinion. the fork freezes in her mouth. she chews, buying herself time, before swallowing pie and clearing her throat. ]

I'll give you one chance to retract the question. [ ... ] And spare us both an honest answer.

[ Well, Steve Rogers never backs down from a challenge and that’s the look in her eye as she looks at him over the pie- now her pie. ]

Who says I don’t want an honest answer? [ No one ever said Steve Rogers was a genius, just a glutton for punishment. ]

[ oh, steve. ]

A year ago, perhaps, I would have agreed with Tony. [ she spears a piece of pie crust and pushes it around the plate. ] But now I think it's not so bad. There's a charm to it. The more I see the beard the less inclined I feel to ask if you've been sleeping rough.

[ this answer would have been easier if she could have shaken her head and told him he looked ridiculous, she hated it, it's a travesty. but no. she's rather gotten used to a handsome bit of scruff. ]

[ that... wasn’t what he was expecting to hear. And his lips twitch up a bit smugly. Take that Tony. ]

So, what you’re saying is you like it.

[ He might use this in a defense argument with a tony. ]

No. [ she is so quick to correct him. a little too quick, truth be told. ] I'm saying I don't hate it. There's a marked difference between the two.

[ it's barely a save, really, and she knows it. fidgeting a little in her seat as the tragedy occurs to her: they are both of them a bit more prepared, it seems, to be flirtatious with one another. a little too late.

she takes her last bite of pie before passing the plate back. ]

Uh huh. [ His smile is smug but he’ll humor her for now, because they are getting along and this is fun. He has missed being able to banter with her like this.

He stares mournfully at the empty plate of pie she pushes back. ]

Couldn’t even leave me a bite.

Oh, for Heaven's sake.

[ it's a production. the way she rolls her eyes; the way she presents herself as swimming in exasperation. peggy has always found being dismissive easier than being sweet. but her short temper is no less genuine than her real smiles -- they're simply two different routes to the same depth of affection. ]

You're stuck a pocket dimension where one of the very few advantages is a sort of -- bottomlessness when it comes to the supply of pies, of biscuits, of any sweet you like. [ she sits back, arms crossing stiffly. ]

There's always another slice.

[ it's better than talking about his beard, good lord. ]

[ He sits back and smiles, watching her huff in exasperation. Some times it’s just too easy. ]

Until the day the closets stop giving us pie, and then what will you steal?

I keep K Rations in the steamer at the foot of my bed.

[ quick, just like that, and she looks a little smug as she says it. truth be told it was rip whose pack-rat hoarding of long shelf-life goods and rations first inspired her to do the same. but it's not as though peggy's going to tell steve as much. ]

Don't you worry about me if the closets go out. [ so to speak. ] I can manage.

[ A raised eyebrow and an amused smile. ] Do you really? Of course you do. I hear they make better ones now. They don't come with cigarettes anymore though I imagine.

[ He pauses. ] Apparently they're bad for you.

[ That was a surprise. ]

Bloody hell. I could have told you that.

[ her eyes roll. ]

The stench alone is a health hazard. Cigarettes and cigars both.

[ -- okay, so peggy didn't really have any preternatural knowledge about the side-effects of smoking. but she bigs herself up a bit, puffs her chest, and there's no forgetting the many squabbles she'd had with dugan over his cigars. liabilities, she'd call them, when they were otherwise sneaking through enemy lines. the enemy would smell him from a mile off. ]

But they were always handy for a good trade.

[ two things peggy always traded away from her ration kits in order to get what she wanted: sugar cubes and cigarette packs. ]

[ Look, Steve vividly remembers the days when doctors prescribed cigarettes for his asthma. Wasn’t he surprised to wake up and find out smoking was not something Captain america was supposed to do. ]

You just didn’t want Dugan giving away our position. [ He witnessed those arguments. And he agreed with them but you couldn’t separate dugan from his cigars.]

...That man never did have much respect for stealth. Or discretion.

[ said with all the affection she could ever muster. steve, the howlies, they're all men for whom she held the utmost respect. at one time or another. no matter how some things had changed.

she grimaces a moment -- fighting with herself over whether she should tell him. in the end, she decides there's no harm in it: ]

I crossed paths with him and the lads not long ago. Back home, I mean. In Russia. [ ... ] Work-related, of course. He's still smoking them.

[ He laughs. ] He definitely did not. I’m pretty sure knocking on Hydra’s front door was his favorite plan of ours.

[ It’s nice, being able to talk about them with someone who was there and who knows. He’s brought them up a time or two to other people but it’s not the same and it just feels like something is missing. But Peggy was there, she knows the stories she can laugh with him. It’s almost like closure. ]

Of course he is. [ He’s shaking his head with a rueful smile. ] they were still working together? After the war?

They are.

[ it's as though she weaponizes the present tense. not against him, mind, but against her own many miniature existential crises that happen every time she's reminded of how far the world has moved on without her. there is something humbling and self-effacing to consider history -- time -- as something larger than one's lifespan. she'd always known it in abstract; wonderland has taught it to her in hard painful real lessons.

(she imagines, then, what it must have done to rip for having perhaps learned those same lessons at a much younger age. peggy is quick to push the thought to the back of her head.)

she flags down a member of the waitstaff. she orders a cup of tea. black, of course. ]

Their names still carry considerable cachet in certain circles. [ ... ] So much so that I was only permitted to join said field op in Russia once I'd promised the chief I could deliver the 107th as our tac-team in Europe.

[ there is a soft sourness there, spinning 'round the word only. ]

[ That makes him smile, he likes the fact that they all stuck together, that they are still looking out for each other. They had been through too much to have just gone their separate ways. He knew some information from files and history books, but hearing it from Peggy makes it real.

He hears what she's not saying and it disappoints him- even after everything she did during the war they still don't understand her value. ]

What was going on in Russia?

We'd chased down a lead, there, on some Soviet operatives. A shadowy group who'd gotten their hands on some of Howard's more...volatile inventions.

[ peggy proves herself careful in how she says it. and in what she says at all. she doesn't really know how much of this got committed to the files and records at the ssr. and, later, at shield. she doesn't know which lies she ought to be telling. ]

And who'd tried to frame him for the whole thing. Howard Stark. Opportunist and traitor. [ ... ] Unfortunately, Washington didn't find it such a hard sell.

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