InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "I do have a blood kink..."

but seriously there will be flying cars (_stark_) wrote,
@ 2014-08-17 23:17:00

Entry tags:

howard stark, peggy carter, test thread

Pre-Fondue Test Thread (Mid First Avenger, after Steve jumps)
All right, so things were not going precisely according to plan. That was okay. Or, it would be, so long as the plane continued to have wings and an engine. It was absolutely true what Peggy had said -- Howard was the "best civilian pilot around," but, unlike non-civilian pilots, his training hadn't been particularly thorough in the area of "dodging other planes' bullets." But they were still in the air! For now. So that was good.

"Is he clear?" he called back to Peggy, grunting softly as he turned the plane up to avoid an incoming missile. "Because if he is I highly recommend closing that damn door and strapping in. It's gonna be a little choppy for a while."

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margaretc
2014-08-20 01:41 am UTC (link)

Well. That had hardly been the topic she'd expected him to broach. Incorrigible to the core. She pursed her lips as she surveyed Howard for a moment. "He's an exemplary soldier and a genuinely good man to boot. We're lucky to have him on our side." It was true: Steve Rogers had a knack for strategy and leadership that it took others a lifetime to learn. Coupled with the sort of selflessness and bravery that allowed someone to blindly fling themselves on top of what they believed was a live grenade. You could turn the tides of a war with an influence like that in the currents.

She was well aware of what her response sounded like: a carefully penned and practiced line. But it was true enough, in its own way. They were entrenched in a war that had them chasing down rogue nazi scientists that experimented on unwilling prisoners for fun. Preserving freedom and rescuing the people that had been harmed by HYDRA were the top priority. Everything else would wait. "How are the designs coming along?" she queried as she carefully used the two tined fork to dip a chunk of bread into the pot of molten cheese. Granted, she wasn't entirely sure what designs she was asking after, but it didn't matter. It was Howard. He had designs for something.

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_stark_
2014-08-20 02:07 am UTC (link)

Howard rolled his eyes dramatically and shook his head at her. To be fair, his motives for asking the questions weren't exactly pure. Generally, he made it a point to avoid any personal drama that might distract him from his work, but this was different. Maggie's relationship with Captain America (or lack of one) could potentially have real bearing on how the super-soldier conducted himself, and that could potentially be problematic.

And, on a completely unrelated note, he wasn't a hundred percent sure he wanted his favorite partner-in-espionage to date one of his science projects, no matter how well he embodied the truth, justice, and the American way. The whole thing just sounded... messy.

Indeed, the fact that she was pointedly avoiding the topic suggested that it was messy. Just as messy as the cheese that dripped from their forks. He chewed thoughtfully, an then completely ignored her attempt to change the subject. "He obviously likes you. No man gets that squirrely over fondue unless he likes a girl."

Just for a second, the shadow passed over Howard's face, hardening the laugh lines around his mouth into something closer to sadness, doubt. "And when we were injecting him, you were pretty quick to run out into the lab when you thought something was going wrong." His eyes were sharp. "That was dangerous. You know better than that."

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margaretc
2014-08-20 02:44 am UTC (link)

Peggy struggled to stifle a groan and the urge to pin Howard's sleeve to the table top with her fondue fork. It was touch and go war inside her head for a few seconds, but her posture remained still. Though still wasn't exactly the word for it. Coiled with suppressed, simmering energy as she allowed him to tick through all of his points. A long silence fell after he finished speaking and she set down her fondue fork, then picked up her glass of water and took a sip of it. "Is it my professionalism as an agent, or my capability as a woman to perform my duties that you're questioning, Howard? Have you had this discussion with Captain Rogers?"

She leaned back in her seat, though it did nothing to loosen the coiled spring of energy that held her together. It was a touchy subject, on more than one level. Field agent training was difficult enough, but when you had to hurdle your way through 'just a dame in a skirt' labels every step of the way, well. It had to be something you really believed in to go the distance. "I'm here to help stop HYDRA. Everything else is irrelevant." Perhaps things were complicated, but was there anything about the past several months that wasn't? Complications could wait. They had bigger fish to fry. "I'd have done the same for anyone in that situation." That was what you did as an agent: throw yourself towards danger and divert it. Had she been worried about Steve? Of course. Would she have done anything differently had it been someone else strapped into Howard's mystery machine? No. Maybe she wouldn't have shouted down from the viewing galley, but the end result would have been the same. Head shot to one of the HYDRA operatives that had infiltrated the operation.

There was probably more that she could say. Like the fact that she was reasonably certain that Steve had thought 'fondue' was some kind of exotic sexual maneuver. He was utterly clueless, which she was beginning to suspect was a trait all men shared. "Does that cover it?"

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_stark_
2014-08-20 03:14 am UTC (link)

Howard blew out a long breath. Of course she jumped straight to that. He was a man, right, so that meant that he automatically had to be treating her like a dumb broad. Even though she wasn't and he didn't and she should know that by now, dammit. It hurt him a little -- just a little -- that she didn't.

He set down his fork with a touch more force than he had intended. "This has nothing to do with you as a woman and everything to do with him as a man." He held up a hand. "It's not you I'm worried about, Peggy." He used her real name for once, indicating that he was serious. "You said it yourself. He's a good man. Too good, maybe. He jumped off a plane under enemy fire and that's just for his friend." He looked at her hard. "Imagine what a man like that would do for the woman he loves."

He didn't hold her gaze for long, immediately distracting himself with spearing another piece of bread. "Anyway. Just be careful all right?"

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margaretc
2014-08-20 03:39 am UTC (link)

Peggy was not about to admit that Howard might have a point there. Instead she glanced away and lifted her napkin to dab it at the corner of her lips, then refolded it to set back down in her lap. She looked back up to meet his eyes and cleared her throat. "Don't forget that he loves his country. That comes first." She picked up her fork as well once he'd speared another piece of bread and occupied herself for a moment with raveling an obscene amount of cheese around the bread she'd picked.

"I'm always careful," she responded, and a grin curved her lips again for a moment. That was not strictly true. She did tend to go haring off into danger with her gun drawn. Or when she let her fists do the talking. Or, on one memorable occasion, an aerosol can of insecticide, a lighter, and her nylons. But she was careful when it counted. And there had never been a moment when it counted more. There were more important things happening in the world than these particular 'what if's.'

It felt as if the silence was on the verge of becoming uncomfortable. She got along well with Howard, but they didn't typically delve into such serious, personal topics. She couldn't remember the last time he called her Peggy. All red flags that it was a perfect time to change the topic. "So, is it just that you don't have any designs in the works?"

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_stark_
2014-08-20 04:03 am UTC (link)

And with that, a smile sparked back onto Howard's mouth, prompted by the sheer amount of cheese she'd managed to fit on one little cube of bread. "Careful enough to know when to accept dangerous, unauthorized missions, anyway," he said lightly.

He dipped his bread into the cheese and idly tried to beat her record, his eyes glazing over just a little when he thought of his favorite design. "Please. I'm designing a dream." He breathed a soft, pleased sigh. "After this war is over, I'm going to save the goddamn world. You watch. Peace for years. Decades!" He grinned. "It'll be great. And that's coming from the guy selling the guns."

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margaretc
2014-08-21 12:26 am UTC (link)

Peggy couldn't help but grin when Howard lightly commented about taking on dangerous, unauthorized missions. She did her level best to be an exemplary officer for the SSR, and though it hadn't technically been an official mission, it was absolutely a worthy cause. She would catch some flack from her supervising officer, no doubt, but flack wasn't enough to stop her from doing what was right.

She regarded Howard with amusement as an unfocused, dopey look came across his face. It was the sort of look one typically associated with men looking at freshly baked pastries. Or women. And here was Howard, lusting after world peace. She wouldn't have been surprised if he started drooling. "And how do you plan to save the goddamn world, Stark?"

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_stark_
2014-08-21 04:12 am UTC (link)

Howard chewed his bread as he cued up a quick elevator speech in his head, his eyes already sparkling. Setting his fork down, he spread his hands apart, palms out, and brought them apart in a rainbow arc. "Picture for me if you will," he said, "a world in which everyone has access to an equal amount of cheap, clean energy. No quibbling over resources. No slave labor. Stability." His smile grew. "That world can exist. It can. Maybe not soon, but Maggie..." he shook his head. "There's something I'm working on. A generator. I haven't worked out all the kinks just yet, but once I figure out how to power it well enough, it's going to work."

He lifted his chin, dreamy. "And it's going to save the world. Maybe not in twenty years. Maybe not even in my lifetime. But someday, Maggie. Someday not too far away." He reached for his fork, expression snapping back into humor. "But first the Nazis. One thing at a time."

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