in his own little room again ((nexus_crossings continuity, for chatnerd, but open))

[shieldborne]

God's righteous man, Ultron had mocked to his face a few years back. Pretending you could live without a war. Steve had to acknowledge he wasn't wrong. The vision Wanda pulled out of his head, it wasn't wrong either. He is half strung-out, bone-weary, combat fatigue personified. Half of him wants to go home.

The other half? Will never be able to stop fighting, because that means having to face what's left.

Visiting the Nexus has only driven that point home, in some ways. No matter how much people encourage him to expand his horizons, take time to relax and recover, to be Steve Rogers, he's restless and adrift there, friendly with everyone but not, in the end, all that close to any. But there is one idea that's caught at him relentlessly since his arrival there, and that's the inescapable visual of kids fighting wars.

Most of them probably don't see it that way. Friendly neighborhood Spider-Men, just doing what they can, what they innocently assume any good person would do. Every time he thinks about that, it hurts. And he has plenty to do in his own world, collecting the proliferating alien weaponry across the planet, breaking up and hunting down remnants of HYDRA, and ducking the law. But here there's an opportunity for something more, something gentler, something that's not fighting and might, in the long term, keep people from ending up in the psychological catch-22 he's gotten himself into.

There's no Nexus real estate office, but there are people who have a clear idea of what land and buildings can be claimed and what can be done with them. Steve has somehow, through funds scraped together, favors called in, and contacts made, become the proud owner of what was once some kind of diner or restaurant. The building is a decent size, two floors, with a lot of the appliances and furnishings still inside it and still working. Including a jukebox, which is what he's looking at right now, outside the front of the building. He's got most of it taken apart and spread neatly on blankets on the grass, and he's methodically cleaning it bit by bit.

The long term plan is a safe house he can set up for the costumed-hero types here that have nowhere else to go if something goes wrong. The kids, specifically. He won't be able to be here all the time, himself, but he can put it together and give what he can. Fill it up with food and medical supplies, maybe put in some bunks, some security--

Well, the plans are still evolving, but it's something.

Comments

[chatnerd]

Adrien might be from France, but he's aware of American holidays. So, he's taking the chance to slip away while he's technically supposed to be practicing piano, a covered dish tucked safely into the bag he was carrying.

It was a simple thing, that he thought might be nice as a way to thank Steve for his kindness before. It took some time for the teen to track him down but soon enough he was peering over the project the man was absorbed in, head tilting curiously.

"..Need a hand there?"

[shieldborne]

Steve is in the process of meditatively checking the inside of the mechanism for frayed wires. The whole thing needs to be cleaned out, and he thinks he sees where he can replace some of the albums--maybe even set it up so an MP3 player can be plugged in on shuffle. Anyone who ends up visiting or staying there ought to like that. But there's a nest back in the corner that either a mouse or a squirrel made, which means a lot of damaged wires--

He didn't hear the kid coming, and he starts a little at the voice, withdrawing his head and broad shoulders from the casing and looking up at the kid. "Uh? Oh! Oh, hey, pal."

He smiles, glad as ever to run into a friend. "Sure, if you have the time. Any good with electronics?"

[chatnerd]

Adrien's smile turned a bit apologetic at how he startled Steve, but at least the man didn't hit his head. Small favors.

"I'm alright at it? Not really my specialty though." He set the bag in his hand on the nearest bench to keep it out of the way before he was coming to join Steve, crouching by the jukebox cabinet.

"What's wrong with it? Or is it just needing some cleaning up?"

[shieldborne]

Steve should really be more aware of his surroundings. If he hit his head, the jukebox would have taken way more damage than his skull, anyway.

"I'm just cleaning it up right now. It wouldn't power on before, but I think it just needs cleaning and to have some wires replaced." He points at the remains of the animal's nest he's pulled out, a little pile of grass and thread and fur.

"I guess you don't actually catch mice in costume, huh? Could have used you for that." He's teasing. "But I think whatever made that is long gone now."

"I'm glad you showed up, though. I could use your input here."

[chatnerd]

"Oh yeah, that'd do it. I think I can help with wires, at least if we keep track of what needs to go where as we do it." It wasn't unlike helping Max with some of his projects- while Adrien wasn't as tech-minded as he was, he had steady hands and was able to take direction well.

"Mice? No, no, we're usually chasing butterflies." Adrien replied with a wry grin, though the expression shifted to something a bit more confused at the concept.

"My input? What on?"

[shieldborne]

"Thank you for that adorable mental picture, which I'm sure is not at all adorable in real life," Steve smiles back.

"Yeah, you." He reaches over and gives his shoulder a friendly squeeze, then rolls back to sit on his heels.

"I just bought this building. Remember how I was saying, about other teen and child heroes around? I'm going to get some furniture and supplies in here. Some non-perishable food, first aid kits, change of street clothes? Just in case someone runs into trouble in their own world and needs a place to lay low here in the Nexus."

"So...yeah. If you want to help me come up with ideas for furnishing it? You're welcome to come here, either way."

[websnextdoor]

Thanksgiving is always a modest affair in the Parker household. Every year Peter and May head down to their local soup kitchen and volunteer to make and serve meals. It's never been a mandatory thing in the Parker household-- Peter is happy to give back and help out those in need.

It does, however, mean he's a bit scarce for a few days. Especially from the Nexus. He won't see Steve's text for a bit, but once he's back to routine Peter will be dropping by the Nexus pretty quick. Or at least, Spider-Man will be. His PINpoint pings him when he's hit the coordinates Steve gave and he drops down from his web with a little flip outside of a slightly run down building. He tilts his head to one side, then the other before pushing open one of the doors.

"Knock, knock?"

[juststeverogers]

Steve's still not sure what to think, getting a text from himself. Well, the other Steve Rogers, at any rate. His older self? Every time he tries to contemplate what it could mean for their worlds--either of them, really--he starts to get a major headache. Steve's pretty sure Natasha does too but she's encouraged Steve not to overthink it or waste time worry about it more than necessary.
The Nexus will be what it always is. A convenience and a pain in the ass at the same time. They don't talk much and that suits Steve just fine. Less chance of messing up timelines and worlds that way.

But he can't not answer an invitation. He'd like to think he knows himself well enough to assume there'd be a damn good reason Steve's counterpart would call him out here. A reason that only grows more sobering when a familiar shock of blonde hair comes into view when he rounds a corner.

[red_room]

Thank every god in every realm for men's ability to grow beards. Not that Natasha can't tell the Steve's apart without it because she most certainly can. But it's so much quicker and easier for all involved that they don't look identical. Nat gives Steve a slight nod of her head. Enough to let Cap know that she's his ex-Russian spy slash assassin and not some other Romanoff.

Ever since Loki asked her about that she hasn't been able to put it from her mind completely.

"You know, I took a day off to get away from you right?" A lie, but an easy one. Steve just shakes his head and nods toward the building Natasha's lingering outside of.

"He call you here too?"

Inviting both herself and Steve out here, but not together? Curious. Natasha shrugs before she gestures vaguely toward the door.

"Guess we better find out what he wants."

[chatnerd]

"Not nearly as adorable as I'd rather it be." And that's not even going into the emotional turmoil the Akuma victims are usually suffering to be targeted as they are, or the sheer guilt they feel afterwards.

"Oh." Adrien settled back on his heels, peering up at the building thoughtfully. A little surprised at the idea, but it also made sense. "I think it's a good idea. Having... somewhere to go, I mean. I'm not entirely sure what it might need yet, but I'll try and think of things that might help."

[shieldborne]

Were he aware, Steve would heartily approve. He's done similar volunteering, himself, whenever he could, but it had gotten tricky in the States before he left. He was too recognizable, even out of uniform.

These days, of course, he's mostly in the field, and Thanksgiving is just a day like any other.

Steve's mostly finished with the jukebox when Peter arrives, and the tools and tarp are still scattered out front of the building, but Steve is not. When Spider-Man enters, he'll find Steve standing on what appears to have been a coffee counter, dusting the light fixtures.

"Hey!" He greets, sparing a quick, warm glance over his shoulder. "I was wondering where you've been. Holidays kept you busy?"

The interior is pretty Spartan right now, with the Jukebox plugged in but not running. There are booths lining the walls, and the floor has a checkerboard pattern. The wallpaper is yellowed, but looks like it had an abstract cactus pattern on it before. There are three doors at the back of the room, one propped open with a mop bucket.

"Sit down wherever, I'll be down in a sec."

[shieldborne]

Steve nods. "The thing is, I know you all feel like adults, and you're doing the work of adults, but legally you're a lot more vulnerable than a guy in my position is."

And honestly, Steve himself feels plenty vulnerable these days.

"Hopefully, no one will ever have to really use it as a safehouse on a long term basis. I'd love it if all we ever need it for is a place for a nap or storage for some kind of project, but..."

He glances at Adrien sideways, trying to frame what he's thinking in words that don't sound too horribly cynical. "But sometimes the system fails everyone, and I don't want to see minors paying the price for that."

"I'll give you a key and the security code before you go today." Adrien gets one, and Peter Parker gets one, and Steve will decide who else needs it from there.

[shieldborne]

He really didn't expect them both to turn up together, is the thing. Actually, he was half hoping they wouldn't, because they're disorienting enough separate. His problem is not that he can't get over the fact that they're alternates from another world, it's that he keeps forgetting they're alternates from another world. He's like an Alice in Wonderland that's been down the rabbithole too long now. Nothing makes sense, so everything makes sense, and he'll just go with the flow of it, for the most part.

At some point he's going to have to let Thor know what he's got going on here, too, but there's no hurry for that. Thor has his own people to look after right now.

In any case, Steve is opening the door for them before they get close enough to touch it. He's got a basic security system up and running now, and the cameras saw them coming.

He's kind of a mess at the moment. He's in sweatpants and an old 'I <3 NY' t-shirt, knees dusty, and there's a cap perched on his head backwards, which probably means he's been trying to clean under the furniture and fixtures. He's the kind of guy who usually complains how dumb it is for people to wear a baseball hat turned around--the brim is to shield your eyes from the sun, forchrissakes--but the irony is lost on him right now.

"Hey," he greets them with an awkward smile. "Anyone want to help me clean behind the oven? No?"

[juststeverogers]

That's a sentiment Steve can understand quite well. Before he ended up spending some time 'catching up' as Natasha called it, Steve spent quite a long time living in the Nexus when he was stuck here. He likes to think it's made him more open minded in general about the world.

Any world.

But sometimes the ludicrous nature of everything seeps back in. Like watching himself with a baseball cap on backwards and an old ratty teeshirt that still manages to be too small on him despite clearly being comfort clothing. Steve shakes his head after a second to shake his train of thought free from the freeze it had done a moment ago, leaving him staring stupidly.

"Steve. The oven." Natasha nods over to it and that's one more thing breaking him out of his shock.

"Right, 'course." He can move it pretty easily if they want to give it a clean really quick.

[shieldborne]

The too-small shirt is almost synonymous with Steve Rogers at this point. He knows damn well he could go a couple sizes up easily, but he doesn't bother since most of the time he wears even a printed tee as an undershirt. That, and Sam teases that he's disappointed every time Steve wears a workout shirt that fits him right. He's pretty sure the guy doesn't mean anything by it; it's just a running gag at this point.

He laughs softly and waves a hand to halt them. He shouldn't be surprised that they'd help first and ask questions later. "No, no, I'm kidding."

He could move it himself if he needed to. "I mean, sure, but later. I thought I better give you both a heads-up about this project, is all."

He turns on some overhead lights, beckoning them toward one of the booths that still remain in the corner. The seats are covered with bright red leatherette cushions, and the formica on the table is carmine, with squiggly gray and white organic shapes all over the surface, a retro pattern (but then, what's retro when you're from the 1940s?).

"Have either of you run into Spider-Man here? He's a nice kid when he's not sweeping your legs out from under you." Steve sits, notes the dust bunnies on his knees, and stands again to try to brush them off.

"There are two of them, actually. Spider-Men? Spider children. And then there's a boy somewhere in his mid-teens that dresses like a black cat. There are probably more I haven't met."

He looks at his alternate with a grim smile. "It's driving me crazy; all these kids. I figured I better at least try to do something about it."

[websnextdoor]

"Something like that. Soup kitchen always needs a hand during Thanksgiving. Is uh, is anyone else around?"

If not, he's gonna tug off his mask here in a second so he can rummage around in his backpack for a snack. His after school crime fighting has worked up a heck of an appetite.

But oh, sit. He can definitely find a place to perch. Might not be on a chair, but Spidey makes himself right at home.

[shieldborne]

"Soup kitchen," he repeats happily. "Goddamn, kid, you put me to shame."

Steve's been accused of compulsive boyscout behavior plenty, and it's not unjustified, but he thinks Peter has him beat this year. "It's just us. You can lock the door if you want. I don't expect anyone right now."

As far as perching options are concerned, there's the counter with its detached stools, the booths, and the Jukebox. He's welcome to any of the above as far as Steve's concerned. "Do you drink coffee? I have a pot going in the back. I was planning on giving you the full tour here."

He shakes out the fuzzy purple duster he's been using and hops easily from counter to floor. "It was some kind of cafe, but it's about to be a safe-house. Less for me than for you and some of the other crime-fighting hero types I've seen around."

[red_room]

If they could get over the weirdness of seeing each other--interacting with each other--they might find amusement in what's the same and what's different about them. Steve's put a lot of effort into being more open minded about this but it's still so bizarre to be talking to himself.

He opts to find a nearby wall to lean against and fold his arms. Settle in for a listen and give Natasha the stage front and center of this other Steve Rogers' attention.

"Not personally since Germany." Natasha glances back at Steve but she knows it's the same for him. "We've heard a lot about him here though. I've been trying to keep an eye on him while I'm around, but I doubt he's noticed."

It's what Nat does best after all.

"You're all always so shocked when kids sign up to fight." Bruce was the same way. Natasha has never much understood it. Then again, she used to be one of those child soldiers herself once upon a time. "So what? You snazz up a secret base they can make a club out of?"

[websnextdoor]

"It's my aunt's idea, honestly. She's really something. I don't think you'll ever meet a nicer person."

Makes Peter want to do all he can to support her and do what would make her proud. When you help somebody you help everybody. Good words to live by. Next time Steve turns around Peter will be sans mask hanging out on the counter while he digs through his backpack.

"Oh, sure. I haven't tried it much, honestly." Caffeine has never really been a thing he's needed a whole lot of. "But I'd take a cup and give it a shot."

[shieldborne]

Phew, tough crowd. No one even wants to sit? Steve looks a little uncertain by the reception, but maybe he just wasn't clear enough about the invitation. He sits again, and he's about to clarify, but something about the way Natasha speaks gets his hackles up.

It's not abnormal for them to butt heads on occasion, even with as much as he trusts and relies on her. It feels weird, though, if only because he's reminded this isn't his Natasha Romanoff. He huffs out one of those 'holding onto my temper' sighs and taps his fingers on the formica.

"Yeah. Sure. Hands-off. That's fine, whatever. You know, I'm not shocked they try to sign up, I'm shocked that grown-ups are letting them. I didn't drop a plane in the Arctic so a grade-schooler could run around New York getting shot at and then potentially get arrested and tossed into a goddamn floating cage without trial."

Wow. Language, Steve.

"It's an emergency safe house. If they end up on the run on their own world, if their families get targeted, if someone gets hurt bad and needs to go to ground, if they have a big project they can't trust anyone with, they can bring it here. I have some food supplies, I'm working on medical kits. There are some bunks on the next floor up, and I can set up the basement like a bomb shelter if I have to."

Whoops, and now he's wound himself up, so he's on his feet yet again, pacing, hands in his pockets so he doesn't curl them into fists. "The food is important. Kid's not eating enough. None of the three I've seen are eating enough."

"Neither of you has to be involved. Actually, it's probably better if you keep your distance, because at least two out of three are cagey about their identities getting discovered." It was hard to tell how worried Miles Morales was. He might have been jumpier about demasking if he hadn't been in the company of Peter Parker and Captain America.

"I just wanted you to know this is what's happening, and why." And apparently, god help you if you have a problem with it, guys. He's got that blue-steel look in his eyes now.

[shieldborne]

"I hope I do get to meet her some day." Steve's smile lingers. "It's...ugh, this is going to sound sappy, but it sounds like when I lived in Brooklyn with my ma. It could've been us against the world, and sometimes it was like that, but she never got tired of reaching out and trying to help the next person."

He shakes his head. "Wait here, I'll get you some coffee."

He won't be gone long, and what he brings out a tray with some sugar packets and creamers, two cups of coffee, and a sleeve of packaged chocolate-chip cookies. He sets the whole thing on the counter by Peter, takes up his own cup, and gestures at the cookies as if to indicate he can help himself.

Hopefully his desire to feed the boy isn't too transparent.

"I'll give you a key before you go. I don't know if you've met the other guy I gave one to. Dresses like a black cat?"

Splitting Here

[juststeverogers]

It's not that Steve doesn't want to sit, but he can read the discomfort off of his counterpart like a book and he's really not quite sure yet if he's welcome. And then Nat has to go and open her mouth.

He and Natasha have already argued about this before and probably always will. He can see the hypocrisy when it's not his hackles being raised but he knows himself well enough to know that saying anything right now is only going to further start a fight. So Steve lingers and watches, and when Natasha looks back at him for support he shrugs and drops his gaze before turning to look around the place.

"Mind if I give myself a tour? This place is really something."

He'll wait until the waters have settled a bit to try and talk to Steve about this. In the meantime, maybe he'll find out something else about all these kids he's missed arriving here in his ever growing list of missions that keep him away from the Nexus.

Splitting Here

[red_room]

Natasha looks back at Steve for any kind of guidance or backup here, but she's not surprised to see him disengage on this particular subject. Her eyes still narrow in suspicion that the stubborn fire in his veins dumbass from Brooklyn is backing down from this fight. It usually means he's waiting for his time to pick it right back up again.

"Is that how you think of Wanda, too?" And maybe she's asking both of them that, her jaw set when she turns back to Steve. He's thought the worst of her before. She can handle whatever he thinks of her now.

"What we want isn't going to stop these kids form getting involved either because they believe in the cause or because someone forces them to."

They tried the safe and sheltered thing with Wanda before the Accords happened. All it ended up doing was making it easier for someone else to turn it into a cage. So now they're hands off. ....Ish. Granted she's also a bit older then the kids Steve's talking about here now, but she wasn't when they first ran into her.

[websnextdoor]

"...I know that feeling." After Ben died, Peter wasn't always the best at helping May deal with her grief. The man was a father figure to Peter but it's only now that he's older that he really realizes what Ben was to Aunt May. What it's like to even start to care about another person like that.

Their love must have been so much more than the crushes he's felt, and to him they feel like everything in the moment. It's part of what made him try to hide this whole thing from her so she wouldn't have to worry about losing him too.

The face Peter makes when he tries the coffee black is a timeless face of all children realizing they have made a grave mistake in an effort to appear mature. He shakes his head quickly as if it will rid the bitterness from his mouth before snatching up the creamer and sugar to put as much of both in as the cup will take. Once it's taken on a much more pallid tan he'll try it again very carefully.

Oh, that's not too bad. More flavor tests are necessary of course. But not bad at all.

[shieldborne]

"I'm guessing," Steve says, "that you're trying to keep May away from the Nexus, and I don't blame you, but I want you to keep this place in mind. If you run into trouble, either of you, it's here. That's all it's for."

"...well, I mean, if you want to do homework here or something, that's fine, too, but it's supposed to be a resource. Just in case. Food, drinks, and medical supplies are all fair game for now. I'll probably come up with a tracking system later so I can guess how much I actually need to keep stocked."

He trails off to watch Peter taste his coffee, and breaks into a grin. "It doesn't taste how it smells, does it?"

"Before the war, I always put a ton of sugar and milk in mine. Especially milk. I had stomach ulcers. But in the army, I got used to taking it black, or with half a Hershey bar melted in it, on a lucky day."