TheGirlThatIsBorderlineCrazy: Glad you liked.
SceneNeko: It was totally a date. She just doesn't realize it yet. And glad the scene with Loki made you smile. Pink Iron Man was fun to write, too. Thor just seems like he would like to watch it.
catwoman90808: I actually entertained the idea of Loki/Amelia for this story as well, but teasing Virgin Steve is just too much fun! :)
Scaevola2: Oh. The picture is a similar scene but without Amelia. Of course it was a date.
Vex Matthewson: Glad Pink Iron Man made you chuckle. Glad you enjoyed the scenes with Loki and Steve. Hoping the next ones are realistic too.
Marsktr: I squeed while writing it, so that makes me grin. And I really prefer to see Loki as 'human', but that is why I like him, after all. Some characters appear less, while others appear more. Of course, we mostly see Loki, Steve, Thor and Tony. For now. :)
katta92: I feel really honored by the review, then! It makes me happy to know that you liked it enough that you reviewed! And this one is leaning towards Steve, but I may similar story with Loki/OC that is more light-hearted.
SmartKitty314: I'm glad you liked the ice cream scene.
Bandnerd2669: It is odd to remember that sometimes, since he does so much to hide it, in the end. But I think it underlines who Loki is.
coleypane: I'm glad!
Mischief, Rum and Comic Book Wishes
(Formerly 'The Wish Assistant')
By Adrienne Valentine
Chapter Eight
Steve took me to see the Empire State Building on 'day twenty six'. I'd heard that the lines were insane, but half an hour into waiting, someone must have recognized Steve as Captain America and took us into the express lane (luckily without making a big fuss out of it), we didn't even have to pay for it and we were standing out on the observation deck, with me flitting around to the level to see everything I could. Steve managed to stay close by me, despite that I was shifting through the crowds using my smaller size to my advantage. Being short was useful when it came to crowds. With how much I hated crowds like this, I had gotten used to sneaking through them as fast as I could in order to avoid having to stay in them for too long.
I had to slide by a few people; a young African-looking couple discussing the buildings (the woman had white hair), an old Asian man with his teenage grandkids (I assumed, they were very cute, called him something that sounded like it could have been grandfather), a middle aged gentleman with a cane (who was rather slow moving to the side), a couple of people that I was pretty sure must have been SHIELD agents (or I was paranoid, they were men in smart looking suits with sunglasses), a family with a sulking teenager glaring for pictures (they had Steve take the picture), not a lot of kids (surprisingly, I would have expected more), and more than a few love-struck couples (which certainly a little awkward, but I chose to ignore them).
In the end, the whole thing is amazing, we spend about an hour, maybe two, up there as I flit about before we go back to ground level. I was bouncing once again as we went down the elevator, all the energy from my excitement yet to die down. New York was big. I had not yet been to even half of the city. No where even close. I hadn't even been to half of Manhattan. The whole place was so... big! And I had my own personal tour guide for it all. We got ice cream from the shop we'd passed by the other day and were busy eating on our way back to the tower. He'd paid for them. I really needed to keep cash on me. I was starting to feel bad that mister forties mentality was having to pay for these things.
He didn't seem to mind. Which was good. This ice cream was delicious, after all. I'd gotten strawberry and he'd gotten chocolate. His chocolate looked really yummy though. But that might have been because he was eating it... And my eyes kept drifting towards his mouth and- I'm staring. Look away, eat your own damn ice cream. So I do, realizing that I have got it bad. I have a huge crush on Steve. Massive. More than just he's attractive and nice... I really wish that these were dates. I'd never been on many, and these seemed like they would make good dates. He was just showing me the city though. But... I can still tease him through all of this. I smirk and stopped where I was for a moment, turning towards him with a small smile.
"Can I taste yours?" I ask him. He hesitates for a moment, but I'm moving anyways. I grab the hand holding the ice cream cone and bring it over to my height. Where I do my best 'sexy lick' and it must work because he blushes. I pull back and grin at him innocently. "Yum."
And simply continue towards the building. That's one I've done before, (though not in front of him). I might be able to make him blush The way he blushes is so attractive that it makes me want to- Stop it. We finish our ice cream as we arrive at the building. When we walk into the elevator this time, Natasha is already in there. I smile at her as we step in, giving the other woman a small wave.
"Steve taking you out?" She asks with that same bored tone and slight quirk of her eyebrow. I nod excitedly at her.
"Yea. We went to the Empire State Building. Pretty amazing." I tell her, noticing Steve smile slightly on my other side. I sent him a wide grin, but turned my attention back to the spy. "What brings you here?"
"I need to talk to the other Avengers." She answered. I waited for her to continue, saying nothing. She didn't. That woman, sometimes hit me a bit off.
We went up the floors in silence from there, I was still bouncing, but it was starting to wear off a little bit. I glanced over at Steve on my other side with a small grin and poked him in the side. He smiled down at me as I waggled my fingers at him, bored with the lack of conversation. He turned towards me a little bit, leaning down to tell me something when the elevator 'ding'ed open. It was our floor. I grabbed his hand as Natasha left the elevator, dragging him out into the common room with me.
Apparently Bruce had returned to the Tower, because he was sitting there with Tony on the couch, talking. With a bag on the floor next to him. I waved at the two of them as we approached. The Asgardians were no where to be seen at the moment, though. Nor was Pepper. Oh well, I suppose. Her and I were starting to get along well after the prank we pulled on Tony.
"Bruce! What brings you here?" I ask him as we all approach. He glances at my hand wrapped around Steve's and I let go, pulling my hand back to me, running it through my hair and looking away. Yup. I just got caught holding Captain America's hand like some silly girl. Curse him and being polite, it made this so hard sometimes.
"I thought I would stay here for a bit." He said casually, not actually answering the question, but that wasn't a big deal. Shrugging, I simply nodded at him as Natasha took over the conversation.
"Where is Thor?" She asked in a dry tone.
"He followed his brother to the library, I think." Tony responded, "I swear, if I didn't know better, I'd say that man was a puppy."
"I'll go grab him." I tell her, chuckling a little at the man's joke before heading towards the stairs. Seems like this Avengers business is important, so I'm not going to argue with them at all.
o0o
"So... You're going to have to leave again soon?" I ask Steve, my back against his arm. He nods at me, and I notice that he has his sketch pad out again.
"Maybe. Natasha seems to think that it may be better if only Bruce and Tony go." He explains. It's just the two of us, which was actually surprising. Loki and Thor liked to hang around constantly. I didn't quite know what they were doing either, but I was not going to complain too much. I did like having time alone with him, after all. Especially if he was going to have to go on a mission. "A potential issue at a science research facility."
I nod a little bit, pouting. I have to admit that I hope he doesn't have to leave. Selfish as it is, I like having him around, especially since he's showing me around the city. I'm not going to tell him that though. I return my attention to the book in my hands and I realize that I've read this sentence three times already. Sighing, I know I am not concentrating at all next to this man, he's a bit distracting to me. Especially since he's drawing. I want to be nosy and peek over his shoulder to see what it is that he's drawing, but at the same time, I don't want to feel like I'm invading his privacy. He doesn't pull out his sketchpad very often. So instead I continue to sit there leaning against him and before I know it I'm dozing off next to him.
I jolt back awake when I hear someone slam something down on the table. I glare up to find Tony there with a wide smirk, Bruce standing slightly behind him. I looked at the table to see what Tony had slammed down. It was a box. A shipping box, to be exact. I raise a sleepy eyebrow at the man, frowning.
"What is this?" I ask him, grumbling as I sit up a bit.
"This," He says, motioning towards the box, "Is your new uniform."
"My... New Uniform?" I say hesitantly, eyebrows raised. He nods at me, and I'm starting to get suspicious.
"You're going to be doing some more work for me at Stark Industries." He told me with his grin still on his face, "So why don't you go try it on to make sure it fits?"
"Right now?" I asked him. He nodded. Sighing, I grabbed the box off of the table and went to my room to change. I was tempted, for half a second, to at least pretend to change out here in the common room; To watch Steve flounder and flail as I start taking off clothes, but that would be teasing the poor boy too much. So I shut my door behind me and proceed to open the box. As I pull out the uniform I realize that he must be messing with me. Oh well. I put it on anyways, feeling like I'm squeezing into this thing. The top still doesn't fit properly, but I'm heading out there anyways since Tony apparently wanted to see. I sigh as I step out into the hall and back into the common room. Bruce has disappeared, leaving just Steve and Tony to see me in this... 'Uniform'.
"The top is a little small, Tony." I tell him, motioning towards the buttons I had to leave undone at the top. "Everything is a little tight, actually."
"Naw, it fits you fine, Ames." He says, chuckling. He turns his heard towards Steve and I realize what this is about. Hands on my hips, I give him a slight glare before joining in on the teasing.
"I feel like a pin-up girl in this. Like I should pose." I say, before doing just that. A little pose with my bum sticking out, leaning forward, with an 'oops' expression and my hand up. Then I start laughing about it, because it feels so ridiculous. But Steve is blushing, which I think is half the point of this. Tony sure likes teasing him, so do I, really. It's fun. "But really, you can't expect me to wear this to work."
"Why not?" He asks innocently, pretending he has no idea.
"Even if I'm not your type, Tony, in this outfit?" I motion towards it as I notice Pepper come in behind him from the elevator, she will certainly agree with me on this, "I won't get anything done!"
"You will get a lot of attention." Steve says, and I could swear there's something in his voice that makes me want to ask. But I don't. He's frowning a little bit. I shrug.
"Hah. And I'll be busy saying 'I'm not interested' to all of them." I sigh, dramatically 'posing' with my hand on my forehead. Steve smiles at my comment, and I'm raising my eyebrow, curiosity still nagging me in the back of my mind. Pushing it aside, I was a little bit towards Pepper, waving at her. She is giving me a sort of 'what are you wearing' look. "How do you like my uniform!"
"I don't think so." She answers. I chuckle at her, grateful that someone is on my side on the matter.
"Good, now I'm going to go get changed." I say, turning off and heading back into my room to put on normal clothes. I did certainly like how Steve blushed when I wore this though. I get changed back into my regular clothing a lot quicker than it took me to put on that uniform. I'm going to keep it, though. I don't quite feel like giving it back at this point. Maybe I could wear it randomly 'for no reason', just to tease poor Steve. I still am not sure why he blushes so much when Tony and I tease him, since this can't be that new to him, but maybe I'm just missing something... Oh well. I'm sure I'll figure it out eventually.
Until then, I head back into the common room and plop myself down on the couch next to Steve, he's talking with Pepper and Tony about... something. I didn't quite catch it because the topic changed as soon as I reappeared. Enough to make a girl paranoid. Let's chose to ignore it, though. I'm not privy to a lot of things they talk about, after all. Doesn't mean it's about me.
"So where are you going?" Pepper asks, turning to Tony.
"Pym has a research facility in South America that Hydra might be interested in from the sounds of it." Tony explained, sounding slightly excited. "we're having to figure out who's going. It wouldn't be unusual for Bruce or I to go, since we both know him, but depending on the presence Hydra has there..."
"We might need the whole team." Steve finished for him with a nod. I'm busy trying to remember who Pym is... The name is so familiar. It's at the tip of my tongue and it's really bugging me...
"Ant-man!" I say Suddenly in my excitement over remembering. The others look over at me and I think I said that louder than I intended. Woops.
"Yea. How did you know that?" Tony asks me.
"Comic books, remember?" I answer with a slight smile. Recognition crosses his face, his mouth making a small 'o' for a moment.
"I guess I assume you know less than you do." He admits with a shrug. I chuckle at him.
"Nope. I know a lot." I tell him with a grin. He shrugs.
o0o
Somehow I ended up alone with Bruce. Some people in my situation might have been afraid, but that had nothing to do with why I felt a little awkward sitting there with him. I just didn't know as much about the man as I did about the other Avengers. And when the man was just character, it wasn't as important. Now that he was an actual person rather than just a character, it was a little uh... Odd being alone with him. The 'Hulk' varied between angry and occasionally simply an asshole, sometimes thoughtful. Bruce Banner was another character entirely, but a lot of the 'Hulk' media I had seen ignored that part of the duality. Or didn't cover him a lot, really. So I didn't know as much about him as the others. Which made this feel like getting to know someone new, something that I'd never been good at. New people made me nervous. I felt comfortable around most of the others because I knew so much about them. Even if they didn't know nearly as much as about me, I had the advantage.
The same wasn't true with Bruce. I knew bits, I knew pieces. Nothing was comprehensive. Steve had just gone to work out. Loki did not want to spend time with the man who might turn green and use him as a rag doll again (not that I blamed him). Thor went with him, and Tony was off doing... The mission in South America at Pym's research facility. Clint and Natasha were off with SHIELD and... wow. I really knew too much about what the others were doing. Not that I had many other things to do. It was day... Twenty nine now. I'd only had three assignments for Stark Industries. I still was not able to start the SHIELD self-defense yet, I had nothing to do most days. Besides read and bug the other inhabitants of the Tower. Which right now included the man on the couch across from me, reading a book.
"So... Um... Science-y... Things." I start awkwardly before making a face at myself for how ridiculous that sounded. Bruce looked up at me while I was making said faces and I restored my face to neutral as best as I could. Which was a slightly awkward smile.
"Are you bored, Amelia?" He asked me, sounding amused. I frowned, paused, then nodded a little bit.
"Maybe..." I say, another pause before I actually pick a topic, "So... What have you been up to lately? You don't come to the Tower much."
"Mostly research. SHIELD still had some information on the Tessaract that they gave me access to." He paused for a moment, "Actually, we've been looking into how you got here."
Shifting in my seat, that sentence makes me feel awkward. The idea makes me nervous more so than more than one reason...
"Not sending me back, are you?" I tease, when he doesn't answer immediately it makes me a little uncomfortable. Eventually he shakes his head at me.
"No. Fury thinks it would a good idea to get information from your world." He explains. Well, that's half of why this whole thing was uncomfortable. I frowned a little bit at this, concerned. "You don't think that's a good idea either, do you?"
I shook my head at his astute observation. I really, really didn't. Then I explained why to the doctor. "The information isn't going to be a direct link to the future... It would be more like knowing the way in which you die but not the when..." He gave me a questioning look so I continued with a small nod. "This universe isn't the one that I have the most information out. This is Earth 19999 or something like that. Might be some more nines at the end of that. The comic book world, the one I know the most about, is Earth 616. There are differences between the worlds, so knowing about 616 might create panic rather than actually help."
"How drastic are these differences?" He asks me with a small frown.
"Some are small, or relatively small. Like Steve knowing his friend Bucky before becoming Captain America. Pepper and Tony hooking up." I pause for a moment, briefly. "Earth 616, Pepper marries Happy, she never dates Tony. Then there are some things that I don't know for sure. It would be a bad idea to get all this information that might be one-off in this world and use it as fact."
"I agree with you, but Fury doesn't want to let it go just yet." He tells me. With a sigh, I know it's one of those things that will have to be fixed. Eventually. Somehow. We lapse into silence for a bit as he picks back up his book. Time ticks by for a few more moments before he sets his book back down again, looking over at me. "You know, there is something that I'm curious about."
"Go ahead." I tell him, motioning a little bit with a raised brow.
"Your favorite 'characters', when you knew them as characters, were Loki, Steve and Tony." I nod, wondering where he's going with. It hasn't really changed and I've stopped really thinking of them as characters. That was a bit odd. I wait for him to continue, curious. "You've explained Loki probably a dozen times already, and, Tony isn't the hero type either. From what I understand, most of your favorite 'characters' aren't typical heroes."
"Typical heroes are usually pretty flat. Good for the sake of good, no faults except for inconsequential ones. They're just... Unrealistic." I answer, shrugging slightly. It was true, I usually went for the villain or anti-hero types instead.
"But you like Steve." I blushed at this comment, opening my mouth for a moment before closing it, realizing what he meant. My favorite character.
"I'll admit, before I got into his comics, the movie and such, I didn't think I'd like him either. As a character, that is. I thought he'd be like Superman..."
"Superman?" He asks.
"Different Comic universe, but another typical hero. He's more like Thor, though. Dropped in from space, raised by cute farmer couple. He always has super-strength, near genius, freezing breath. He'd only vulnerable to a rare glowing green stone from his home planet. His moral compass never wavers, rarely subject to the negative human emotions. Basically, he's perfect. Boring." I pause, looking around the room, behind me, making sure that no one else is there while I explain this second part. "But Steve isn't actually like that. I mean, you know the story. Little guy from Brooklyn becomes a super soldier to win the war."
I grin at this part as I go on to explain the rest of the 'attraction' to the character. As silly as it may or may not be in the end. I had not expected my fictional attraction to translate to an actual attraction in the end like it did now. Not that I knew where all of this was going to go. I didn't expected it to go anywhere, really. But...
"It's skinny Steve that you fall in love with. The little guy who's determined to make a difference, he isn't willing to stop trying, no matter what. You have to admire that. He becomes a super soldier because he is a good person." I pause, finding myself a little embarrassed by all of this. I was gushing. Bruce smirked a little bit. I chuckled at myself for a moment, "Getting to know him as a person, it just kind of reinforces it. Steve's interesting, he's sweet, he's... Well, listen to me ramble here. Steve's just different, I guess. Besides, I have a thing for artists. He's really good, too. Have you seen any of his work?"
"No one else really has seen any of my sketches." Steve's voice rings out from somewhere behind me. Near the elevator. I jump, and realize that Steve is behind me. How long has he been there? My cheeks are burning red hot. I cannot stop myself from blushing profusely. I really want to hide my face right now. I sit up and actually turn towards Steve, who is smiling at me gently. It's actually smiling in such a way that I feel like I'm melting in my seat with the way he's looking at me. He walks over to the couch and plops himself on the seat next to me. This is ridiculous. I am acting like a school girl. And Bruce set me up from this. He's doing this because of Tony, isn't he? Embarrassing me since the pin-up outfit didn't embarrass me. That hadn't worked.
"Did you want to go Central Park tonight?" Steve asked me. I grin, nodding and not trusting my voice at the moment.
o0o
It was actually kind of late by the time we had left the restaurant. Later than I had been expecting, at least. We had gotten into there later than I had been expected, I suppose. Season changes always threw me off. It was getting close to fall, the air was starting to get a little chilly and the nights were getting darker sooner. Earlier than I had expected, at least.
I had to admit, this trip out of the tower almost seemed like a date. We had gone to a nicer restaurant than usual. He'd insisted on paying for dinner. Again. I had tried to get to my money without him noticing. Unfortunately, it was in my bra and it was hard to do that. So I was left to let him pay. Or risk pretty much reaching down my shirt or falling out of said shirt in the process. Neither would be entirely too great of an idea. I had actually had to dress up for this place. Not formal, but something more than jeans and a tee shirt. A nice skirt, a semi-casual top. Heels (mostly because he was so tall). Why was I wearing this? I felt so silly.
Even now we were walking through Central Park and I was focused on my wardrobe instead of the scenery. It was so pretty at this time. A warm summer evening, the sun had just barely set. It was actually kind of romantic... I shouldn't think like that. I close my eyes for a moment, trying to clear the thoughts from my head. It wasn't working. I follow him as we walk through the park. Along the concrete path, I stood a little closer to him. I think I was starting to believe them. Loki and Pepper and Tony. It was making me nervous. I kept glancing at him from the corner of my eye. I couldn't stop myself. He was so... Tall. And handsome. And... I'm noticing how his blonde hair looks especially soft in the low light of the park and my hand is starting to move of it's own accord and I have to stop it, mid movement. My hand halted half-way to it's prize. The movement must have caught his attention because he looks over at me, a smile dancing across his lips.
My face heats up, my hand falling back to my side and I divert my eyes to avoid getting drawn in. Does he even realize what he's doing? I chance myself another look, and this time he looks a bit more nervous. Is this whole thing painted on my face so plainly that he can see? I scold myself, trying to simple enjoy this for what it is, instead of worrying about what it isn't. Two friends walking in the park. The silence doesn't help. But I don't know what to say and why is this suddenly so hard?
So I allow the silence for a moment as the pathway climbs a gentle slope. The beautiful greenery stretching out before me, cherry trees flanking us. It's calming, peaceful. Perfect. The beauty of the place settles me and I feel the corners of my mouth turn up of their own accord.
"I bet you could spend a whole day or two here, just wandering." I comment, turning my head towards. He smiles back down at me.
"That you could." He answers, looking around us. "I admit, I didn't come here often when I was younger."
"I don't see why not. I'd be down here every day if I could." I tease him a little, but I'm in such awe at the scenery, especially as we come to a bridge, that it's hard to keep it out of my voice. "It's beautiful."
This time, the silence is comfortable when we fall into it, casually making our way over the bridge. Slowing down a little, I survey the view from the bridge. We're over the water and there is a couple on a boat beneath us, passing underneath. I stop, stepping to the edge and peering after them as they go by and under, sliding my feet into the little holes in the side to get a better look. I feel Steve by me, and I send him a grin as the boat disappears from view. Wanting to chase after it across the bring, I step out. Or try to. My foot slips and I topple to my side- right into Steve. His arms wrap around me, catching me, and my face heats up once again. I get my feet back under me properly, keeping me eyes diverted so he can't see their undoubtedly red tinge, but he doesn't let go.
Instead, he keeps his arms around my waist, gentle and steady. He's holding me against his muscled chest and I can smell him and my head suddenly feels light. It's like when I pulled on that shirt of his my first day in this world. I find myself taking a deep breath in, calming myself and drinking in the scent that is uniquely him. American, like Apple Pie, and old fashioned and grounded. It's just very... Steve. My eyelids flutter closed and I feel his hand move up my side, resting on my shoulder for a moment, the palm of his hand rough. A shiver runs through me and I meet his eyes without thinking. He's staring down at me, unguarded, and I know what comes next. My body responds as he moves. His hand goes from my shoulder, dances across my neck, and lands on my jaw as I tilt my head towards him. Stretching up onto my toes, my eyes slid closed as he leans down and I feel his lips press against mine.
My arms wind themselves around his shoulders, his other hand finds its way to the other side of my jaw and I feel like I'm falling, or flying. His lips are softer than I was expecting and I can taste him, my tongue darting out tentatively. He makes a noise in the back of his throat that hits me like a wave, heat spreading through my entire body as I press myself further against him. He deepens the kiss, pulling me up and further onto my tip toes, but I have to pull back, taking in a deep breath in, hungry for air but wanting desperately to dive right back in.
He smiles gently at me, and he's blushing. I pull myself up towards him, brushing my lips against his for a moment before grinning back at him.
AN: Well, it certainly was a date this time. :) Some progress going on here with Amelia and Steve. Think she gets the point now? No Loki in this chapter, sorry Loki-Lovers. He'll be back soon enough, though. I really wanted to focus on Amelia/Steve this chapter. Let me know if Bruce seems off, he didn't make as much of an appearance in the movie as the others (and I've only seen Edward Norton as the Incredible Hulk a couple times). As always, I absolutely love reviews! They keep me motivated, though I am currently out of town so the next chapter may take a bit more time than it usually would.