[for Various] Steve Rogers' Birthday

[onlyapassenger]

Memorial Day had passed by with little more than a couple of a beers and a five minute conversation, but Bucky'll be damned if he lets Steve's birthday go the same way. Even during the darkest days of the War, birthdays were always given the special treatment; hell, Toro once blew their cover making sure Bucky had a good one. The gruelling grind of the past couple of months is still fresh in body and mind, but in the simple preparation for the day's get-together, Bucky's found some semblance of peace.

He's not much of a party animal -- he's not even much of a planner -- but things fall into place easily enough. They set up in and around Steve's place, that nice bar of his getting some use for once. There are a couple of goats spinning on a spit outside, courtesy of Thor, and a more traditional grill manned by Bucky himself. Platters of cheeses and fruits and vegetables line a table covered in a red, white and blue tablecloth, and there's more than enough flag-themed birthday cake to go around (strawberries, blueberries, and whipped cream make up the familiar stars and stripes, doubling as both food and decoration). Music from Steve's youth plays in the background out of borrowed speakers, and in lieu of streamers, there's a banner that stretches over the front door of his house that reads HAPPY BIRTHDAY, OLD MAN.

It's not a lot, but it's something.

[Open to Marvels, significant others/close friends of Marvels, and any assorted friends of Steve. This post will be linked to the main community on July 4th. Slated post here. ST/LT welcome!]

Comments

[wasafreak]

With each party or event it became a little less intimidating for Teddy to stand in a room, or around a bonfire (complete with spitted goats), with various heroes of legend and his childhood icons. If he thought about any of it too hard, that feeling of belonging went away, but there was a basic level of comfort born, he supposed, of familiarity, and it was kind of nice.

He was experiencing something new, also, in that he had a drink in one hand, cake in the other, and his glasses had slipped down his nose. He was still relatively unused to those, and was contemplating the least conspicuous way to push them up again.

[learnfromthem]

I reach out with my index finger and push Teddy's glasses back up his nose.

"It's still weird seeing you in those things."

[wasafreak]

"It's still weird seeing through these things," Teddy sighs, flashing Kate a grateful, if rueful, half smile.

"You know it never even occurred to me, that my eyes might be shifting like that. Kinda freaks me out, to be honest, thinking about what else could have been fixing itself that isn't anymore."

[learnfromthem]

"Have you gotten a physical?" I ask, because that's a really good point.

"...do they do physicals here?"

I know there's a clinic and an operating room, but I haven't ever been to either long enough to talk to anyone. All I know is some Star Trek guy said something about vaccines.

[wasafreak]

"Probably?" Teddy says, realizing it's not something he's ever inquired after.

"I mean the clinic staff is really good. Last Halloween when I got- when the whole thing with Super Skrull happened- I was in there for a while. You figure they'd have noticed if anything was really wrong while they were wiring my jaw shut," he added.

[learnfromthem]

So I've been told that bad things happen here, but this is the first time any mention of a Super Skrull has been dropped casually into conversation. I blink at him for a second, briefly look down into my drink in case I'm way more drunk than I thought, then look back up.

"...say that again?"

[wasafreak]

"Oh, crap," Teddy states mildly, "yeah. Um, so a while ago people started having really severe nightmares, and then hallucinated those nightmares, and then on Halloween those nightmares came to life?"

He doesn't fidget but he wants to.

"And Billy totally reasonably had nightmares about My Big Fat Alien Family Reunion, and the Super Skrull showed up on Halloween. I, uh."

This is the weird part, the part where Teddy's never technically lied to anyone about it but by omission.

"I wound up in the clinic with some broken limbs and... ribs, and... my jaw. Was also broken. So that was kind of miserable for a long time."

It makes sense, and the conclusion is easy to draw, probably because it's implied. No one on the island is aware of the fact that the person who landed Teddy in the hospital is standing across the room making uncomfortable faces at Tony Stark. Teddy doesn't plan on anyone finding out, either, including Dr. Banner himself.

[learnfromthem]

I blink again, my stomach sinking. I've heard about terrible things happening here -- I've been witness to my fair share the past couple of months -- but I'd stupidly hoped that Billy and Teddy weren't involved.

Emphasis on the stupid. For a second I just revel in my own naivety for thinking that my friends were at least safer here than they were at home. Then I just nod, closing up a little. We're at a party and I have a drink in my hand. It takes a lot of effort to not just down the rest of it in one go.

"...where was Billy?"

[wasafreak]

"Uh, he was with friends. I kind of bolted," Teddy says quietly, glancing away.

"I just couldn't handle the idea of getting him hurt or killed because I couldn't protect him. Which I have been made aware of was not the smart thing to do. But he was okay, so."

[learnfromthem]

Without thinking, I reach over to punch his shoulder.

I don't pull it.

"Idiot."

[wasafreak]

"Ow," Teddy says loudly, then presses his lips together into a line for a moment, "thank you, Kate, yes, again, the jaw-wired-shut, crutches-for-months, watching-Billy-cry thing sort of took care of that message but the punch was a much needed reminder."

He sighs and looks down at where he slopped most of his drink over his knuckles and shoe. Kate's punches mean something.

[learnfromthem]

My own drink is as much on the ground as it is in my glass, and I turn, quickly, to grab some napkins. I keep my expression shut off, guarded. This isn't the place for a confession of my own, though some part of me can't help but think it'd be appropriate.

Pretty much all of these people were there when Cassie and Jonas died, and not one of them remembers it.

"Here."

[wasafreak]

"....What happened after Eli fired that arrow, Kate?" Teddy asks quietly, after a few moments of silence between them, accepting the napkins but not bother to do anything with them.

[learnfromthem]

"We're at a party," I say, like that matters. The excuse sounds weak even to me, so I take the opportunity to dry off my hands. It feels better to move, to do something other than just stand here and keep lying through omission.

I look down, angry at myself and knowing it shows. But I can't not look at him, so I force myself to meet his eyes, holding his gaze as long as I can stand it.

"I screwed up."

[notaparker]

"Man, how did you manage to get glasses?" I say, squinting at them. Which, although not entirely necessary, reinforces that maybe I should be looking into it for reading. Losing the superpowers seems to have had an impact, there, apparently without them my genes are coded for bad eyesight. Yay.

[wasafreak]

"They're Ray Bans," Teddy says defensively, "I got them from the Powers That Island for Hanukkah."

His boyfriend iss Jewish and Teddy embraces that.

The glasses themselves were nice- thick, dark blue plastic frames with wood panels on the side, a very classic 50's Hawaii look, but that didn't mean Teddy didn't hate them.

[notaparker]

"Functional, stylish, and they don't encourage jumping off high cliffs," I say, nodding thoughtfully at them. "I think the Pee-Tee-Eye might like you more than me."

Powers That Island, I like it. Catchy.

[wasafreak]

"...yeah, the lack of parachute or wings sort of makes the jumping off cliff idea not one that ever crossed my mind," Teddy replies, eyebrows drawing slowly together in a look that falls between confusion and concern.

[notaparker]

"I got boots," I say. "Momentum-killing crazy jump inspiring boots. I mean that was what it said on the tin and also... what happened when I jumped off a high thing."

[halfscarlet]

"You've made a terrible mistake," Billy deadpans. He considers grabbing either the drink or the cake, but he steps up to Teddy and pushes the glasses back in place instead. And, while he's there, Billy plants a kiss on him.

[wasafreak]

Teddy grins, first at the Arrested Development speak and then at the kiss, leaning into it.

"My hero," he said, smiling and easing back.

"I hate glasses." This was not at all an uncommon phrase to hear from Teddy Altman. He wasn't so much aware of it anymore, it was just a go-to interjection, but he said it to Billy at least once a day.

[halfscarlet]

"I know." Also a phrase not so uncommon, and Billy accompanies it with a small, sympathetic smile. Even though he occasionally gets a little too enthusiastic and forgets the glasses are there, he's used to them now. It'd be hard for Teddy to look bad at all.

He relieves Teddy of his drink (well, steals, really) and takes a sip. "Good cake?"