entrancelogs | Thomas, he's the cheeky one.

Entry tags:

Thomas, he's the cheeky one.

Who: Bb!James and You
Where: Everywhere
When: 14th-16th
Rating: PG
Summary: James ate the cookies. He's now really a bb!Cap.
The Story:

14th: James is dragging around the shield and looking for certain people: Natasha (Mommy), Steve (Daddy) or one of his uncles. The shield is actually really heavy for a three year old, so sometimes, he drops it some place to go explore about something, but he always goes back to it. He does end up using it as a sled down the stairs.

15th: James has slipped his minders! And he's all over the place. The kid's a monkey. He's climbing the shelves in the library, dragging a chair to climb on so he can get at the Christmas decorations. He especially loves the brightly colored ball decorations hanging from the greenery.

16th: SNOW! HE LOVES SNOW! Let's go play in the snow.

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It's disorienting, going from age seven to an adult again, having to deal with the flood of returning memories she'd had blocked to add to the new ones she'd gained in the past few days. She was steering clear of the dining room for a while, just to be safe, but that didn't stop her from spotting the small form tugging a too-large shield down a hallway, causing her to stop short in surprise.

It wasn't that having a child around the hallways right now was strange - in fact, there seemed to be plenty but that shield was hard to miss, as was the telling shock of red hair instead of blond atop the child's head.

"James?" she hedges uncertainly as she alters her path to start towards the little boy instead.

The thingy is heavy, but he's got to get it back to Daddy. Because it's Daddy's thingy. He doesn't know why it was next to his bed. And it was a big bed! Too big for him.

The thingy scrapes along the floor until he hears his name. Then, he turns to look. With a crash, he drops the thingy and runs at the redheaded woman who called him.

"MOMMY!" He wraps his arms around her knees, cuddling her tightly. "Mommy, Daddy left his thingy in my room." He points at the shield. Daddy's not supposed to do that.

The decorations were nice, Bela had to admit. She had a good feeling that someone who was no longer in Wonderland would like them as well; Bela missed him. It had been a month since Jesse had left and it still hurt sometimes. But Bela was going to do her best to be optimistic and focus on the things that she did have here. Close friends.

When she saw the tiny child trying to reach the decorations by standing on a chair, she felt the need to intervene.

"Hey." Bela say softly so that she didn't startle him. "You shouldn't be up there, sweetie."

James takes a swing at the brightly colored bauble, and bobbles on his chair. At least he hasn't stacked books on the seat to push him higher. He turns to look and then points up. "But I want it."

He wonders where Mommy and Daddy went, but he can find them later.

He actually jumps down off the chair, because it's not that tall. "Are you friends with Uncle Tony?" Because that's usually who the strange women around the place are.

Oh. This is... new.

For a moment, she just blinks down at the toddler wrapped around her leg before reaching down and scooping him up, settling him easily on one hip and trying to ignore the strangely surreal feeling of wondering how did this happen??

"Did he now?" she asks, shaking her head in mock dismay at the boy's daddy. "Maybe he wanted you to keep it safe for him?"

James giggles, because he gets to be in Mommy's arms and where else is bestest? NOWHERE!

Except maybe Daddy's lap, but that's a secret.

"But Daddy's a hero." James points out seriously. "He keeps us safe." Not the other way around, silly Mommy.

He wraps his arms around her neck and is quite comfortable where he is.

Finally, the effects of the fruitcake have worn off, leaving Steve feeling pretty sheepish and in need of making a lot of apologies. He tries to tell himself that it could have been worse. Yes, he'd been mean and dismissive, but at least he hadn't hurt anyone.

He's on his way up to his room to set about sending out a series of apologetic texts, but that's when he hears an odd thudding noise, like something is sliding down the stairs.

Steve's not entirely prepared for when the boy on his makeshift sled shoots down toward him. There's really no way to avoid a collision, so Steve drops to a knee and lets the sledder crash into his chest. It doesn't even hurt, but he catches the boy's shoulders, a little horrified to see just how young he is.

He'd run into a lot of people who had been aged down over the past few days. It must be another effect of the mansion's holiday food, but Steve's not sure who he's come across this time. "You okay there?" he asks.

"WEEEEE!" This is fun! He probably shouldn't use Daddy's thingy to slide down the stairs but he's bored upstairs and can't leave it alone.

"Oof!" James isn't prepared to slam into the solid wall in front of him. But that's okay. He doesn't mind. "DADDY!" He flings his arms around Steve's neck. "Daddy, you left your thingy in my room." He points to the shield... or the makeshift sled.

Should she lie to him and say that she was a friend of his uncle? Bela isn't sure. But at least James was off the chair and out of harm's way.

"I don't know your uncle. But he would probably be worried if he saw you climbing onto chairs and trying to reach a bauble." Bela says gently. "I can find you another bauble. One that isn't high up. Would you like that?"

The answer has a smile tugging at the corner of her lips, because she's trying to meet his serious expression with a matching one. "That's true. He's very good at that. But that doesn't mean you can't help keep it safe too, right? I think you'd be pretty good at it."

She has no idea what she's doing right now, but he seems to be taking it alright, especially when he curls closer and wraps his arms around her neck. Her other hand comes to rub lightly against his back as she turns and bends to pick up the shield he'd dropped.

Well, that answers that.

James had always understood that even though Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff were here, they weren't actually his parents. Not in the way that it would count. Even so, Steve and Natasha have tried to do their part for him, strange as the entire situation is.

But at this age, he wouldn't know the difference, and so it looks like Steve will have to put up with temporary parental status until this all wears off.

It's going to wear off, right?

The shield is actually James', but arguing that at this point won't do much good. Steve picks up James and the shield all at once and then stands up. "Sorry about that. How're you doing? You know you could crack your head open sliding down the stairs like that, right?"

Isn't that what a parent would say?

James frowns. If she's not friends with Uncle Tony, then who is she and why is she here? She's not supposed to be here. right? That's what he thinks.

"Are you friends with Mommy?" Because sometimes, Mommy has friends that stop by. So does Daddy, but they're usually much, much older. Like Uncle James!

"Can you get me one of the pretty balls?" He asks.

He grins, still clinging to his Mommy. He giggles when she bends over and runs his hand along the edge of the shield. He likes the way it sounds.

"Where's Daddy?" Because he hasn't seen his Daddy in a while. "Can we go see him?" Because he wants to see his Daddy and wants to go play. "Can we go play in the snow?" Because the snow is pretty, and he wants to go play in it.

At this age, the last time he saw his parents, they had just left to take on Ultron. James knows that they just won and came home, because that's the way it works. He laughs and wraps his arms around his Daddy's neck.

"Not gonna." He denies. "You caught me." He wants to do it again. "C'n I do it again?" Because that was fun!

"Daddy is... working at the moment, I think." Although she was going to have to notify Steve about this the first chance she got. It looked like they had a toddler to keep an eye on for a few days. This would be... an experience.

Still, she smiles down, mostly unbothered by it. "Why don't we go play in the snow in the meantime and then we'll see if he can come join us when he's done?"

James as a toddler is a whirlwind of energy. He wants to do everything. Especially when he has his parents' undivided attention for a little while. Doing everything with them is the most fun, though he supposes it's not bad being with Azari sometimes.

"Yay!" He kisses her cheek, sloppily in the way only a toddler can. "Is my uncles gonna come?" Clint, T'Challah, and Tony of course.

"That depends on who your mother is." Again, Bela doesn't lie to him about it, hoping that he would be inclined to trust her regardless.

She nods to his request, smiling. "Yes, I can. Just tell me what colour you want and I will get it for you." Bela could always ask for one from the wardrobes but he seemed to want one specifically from up above.

"I'm Bela by the way. What is your name?"

She has no idea who that involves but she just chuckles at the over enthusiastic kiss and carries him towards the stairs. "Maybe we can coerce some of them to come play, would you like that? Although we need to get you a coat, first. Snow is cold. We don't want you turning into a snowman, do we?"

It's a good thing Steve was in this particular place at this particular time, because the last thing he needs is the guilt of letting his not-son in an even younger form get hurt.

Of course James wants to do it again. What kid wouldn't? "Sure, but only do this kind of thing if I'm around," he impresses upon James.

He releases him, setting him carefully on one of the stairs, and then slides the shield over. "Go ahead -- not too fast, though."

"Mommy's Mommy." He doesn't know her name. He learns that later.

"M'name's James Rogers." He even extends his hand to her, just like his Daddy taught him to, because it's important to know how to shake hands.

"C'n we get a pretty red one? Mommy likes red, like her hair!"

He laughs again. "C'n we make a snowman? With a carrot nose?" Because he remembers seeing that on television when Uncle Clint was watching him. "An'a tove-pip hat?" Stovepipe hat. He doesn't remember everything, except the snowman got up and danced around.

"M'gonna do it from the top!" Which, of course, means dragging the shield up one step at a time. James is a strong little boy, and goes about climbing back up the stairs, dragging the shield with him.

He manages to get to the top and stops, panting for a minute, because wow, heavy shield.

"Watch this Daddy!" And... down the steps he goes again.

"We can certainly make a snowman, little man," she agrees with an amused smile. "Although a stovepipe hat might be a little tricky. let's see what the magic closets will give us for a hat, how's that?"

With a smile she takes his hand and gives it a polite shake, finding it sweet how well-mannered he was.

"Lovely to meet you, James Rogers." Bela takes back her hand before nodding to his request. "Yeah, yeah. Of course. I will get you a pretty red one for you. Then you can show it to your Mommy."

After a moment, Bela moves to climb carefully onto the chair and reaches towards the closest red bauble to get it for him, taking her time. Eventually, she has a firm hold of it and steps carefully down from the chair, holding the bauble out to him.

"There you go, James."

"Magic closets?" What are magic closets. He's pretty sure most closets are magic anyway, because they hold monsters just as well as all his clothes and stuff.

"No ball cap. S'not for snowmen." He has serious thoughts about this.

He squeals in delight, clapping his hands. Now he can take it and show it to Mommy and maybe Uncle Clint! "It's just like Mommy's hair." Meaning red. He takes it and prepares to run off but skids to a halt before he gets very far. He has manners.

"Thank you, very much, Miss Bela." He says, cradling the ball close to his chest and being careful about holding it. He doesn't want to break it before he can get it to Mommy.

While Steve could help James carry it up, it looks like he's managing all right on his own and it's probably for the best if he gives him some sense of independence, even at such a young age.

Besides, it's not like dropping the shield would hurt it any.

As soon as James positions himself on the shield, Steve shifts his stance so that he can catch him again. Now that he's ready for it, he also pulls it off without James having to collide face-first into him. Instead he catches him and pulls him up, lifting him off of the shield and into his arms.

Which sends the shield down to the next landing in the stairwell, but that's nothing to be concerned about. Steve smiles at James. "Nice job! You're a natural." Though Steve couldn't even feel any further from being natural about any of this. It's like playing house, except if he messes up he makes a three-year-old cry.

"No, I don't think a ball cap would be right either," she agrees as she carries him up the steps to her room where she can get them things from a closet. "Maybe we can find him a hat that matches one for you though. Do you want a snowman twin?"

She was glad to make him happy, seeing the joy on his face. "I'm sure your Mommy will love it." Bela watches as he begins to take his leave, wondering why he stopped so suddenly.

It soon becomes apparent why James did it and Bela can't help but smile at him, touched by his words. "You are quite welcome, James. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do before you go and see your Mommy."

Maybe Bela was better with children than she thought she was.

James giggles and wraps his arms around Daddy's neck. "That's fun. C'n we go sled? There's snow outside!" Because obviously Steve hadn't seen it yet.

"Mommy an' me made a snowman, but I wanna go sleddin' too." Big blue eyes turn on his Daddy. "Please?" Best behaved voice and everything.

James laughs. Mommy's silly. He can't have a twin. That would be silly. But the idea does have appeal. "C'n we?" He asks, seriously. He's just happy to get to go out and play in the snow. There's not usually snow like this around the mansion.

Steve has in fact seen the snow, but he'd been too grumpy to appreciate it at the time. Sledding does sound like it would be pretty fun, and he actually has memories of doing the same thing as a kid, even though staying out in the cold for too long had always been a bad idea in his case.

He does notice that mention of "Mommy" and makes a mental note to ask Natasha about it later. It's hard to imagine that she would be any good with kids, but then again, she's surprised him plenty of times before.

"Sure. Let's just get a real sled from the closets. I don't think both of us will fit on the shield." He keeps a strong hold on James as he heads down the stairs in search of an empty room with an available closet.

James laughs, delighted. He loves hanging out with his Daddy. His Daddy is a big hero, so sometimes he's stuck at home and can't see him for a long time. But James is okay with that because there are days like today when they can go do things like sledding!

"Can I do it? Mommy said if you wish really hard, the closets will give you anything!"

There doesn't seem to be any harm in letting James give it a shot, unless for some reason the closet decides to play a prank on them. But Steve will be right there, so after a moment he nods.

"She was right about that. It really does work that way, you'll see."

Steve locates a room and steps inside, closes the door behind them and then stoops down to let James stand on his own.

He nods toward the closet. "Go ahead, give it a shot."

James grins and bounces over in front of the closet and wishes really hard. Because he knows how to wish. He wishes every night for Mommy and Daddy to be safe. He wishes for his Aunts and Uncles to be safe. It's really easy to wish!

Except, there's a thump in the closet and James blinks. He rushes forward, opening the door. Wedged in the doorway precariously is an absolutely huge sled that could probably fit all the Avengers, including the Hulk.

"I did it!" He grins brightly at his Daddy. "Look Daddy!"

It's really no surprise that James gets it right on the first try. He's got a strong will, from what Steve has seen, and children are particularly good at wishing.

What he's not expecting is for the result to be so monumental. The sled is large enough that it could crush James under its weight if it fell on him. Steve rushes forward, but not with enough urgency that he might startle James, and reaches out to pick up the sled and balance it on one shoulder.

"Looks like we're set," he tells James. "We can head outside now. Do you want to lead the way?" Steve's hoping that James is old enough to at least have the kind of coordination needed to go down a flight of stairs without falling on his face.

The closet also provided a coat and hat and gloves, which James also needs because he doesn't know where Mommy put his other ones. He snatches those up and puts them on before bouncing out of the room.

"Do you need help carrying it?" James asks, heading down the stairs. He can walk down all by himself. But he wants to help with the sled too.

At least James is aware of how he needs to stay warm in this chilly weather, and he bundles up without complaint. Steve's starting to realize that he would have been a good kid to raise, excitable and well-behaved, and he feels a strange kind of guilt that the other version of him died instead of being there.

It's not his fault, obviously, but maybe he can make up for it a little now.

"I've got it, don't worry," he says in response to James' question. Honestly, he's not even sure how they would share the weight, with the height difference, but even a sled of this size is nothing to Steve.

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Thomas, he's the cheeky one.

Later on the 14th

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15th

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Late on the 14th

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