A/N: It's my birthday, so here's a present for you all.


Coney Island

The day after their zoo excursion, Steve decided he wanted to see Coney Island. He made Leslie plan the trip and navigate the subway system, an amusing reversal of their usual roles.

Leslie proved she wasn't hopeless at the subway. She just didn't feel safe riding them alone. Riding along with a powerfully built super soldier was no problem at all.

Leslie led them out of the Coney Island subway station with a flourish and a "ta da!"

Many attractions were still closed for the season, but Leslie and Steve wandered around. Steve was delighted to find a minor league ballpark, the first professional baseball park in Brooklyn since the Dodgers left Ebbets Field, Leslie read from her phone. Steve immediately made plans to get tickets once the season started. And he thought the Brooklyn Cyclones was a great team name. The Cyclone had been a famous Brooklyn landmark even when Steve was a kid.

"Are you still mad at Walter O'Malley for moving the Dodgers to L.A.?"

"No. I've decided that it's Robert Moses' fault. He wouldn't help O'Malley get land in Brooklyn. He wanted the team to move to Flushing Meadows. Queens! They might as well be in Los Angeles as in Queens!" Steve said with disgust.

Leslie covered her mouth to hide her amusement.

Near MCU Park was a touching memorial to the first responders who died on 9/11. The names of more than 400 people and one rescue dog were inscribed on the Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance. Steve lightly touched the granite walls, reminding himself that neither his father's war nor his own had been "the war to end all wars."

As they moved on, he was interested to see the Coney Island History Project, but disappointed when he found out it wouldn't open until Decoration, I mean, Memorial Day.

"We'll have to come back," Leslie said. She grinned impishly. "We have to see how many times we can find your name in there."

Steve shook his head at her in warning, but privately wondered how many times he could find Bucky's name in the exhibit.

The beach, of course, was always open, though they had it mostly to themselves on a breezy, chilly, weekday in April. Steve dragged Leslie along to Nathan's Famous.

"Always hungry," Leslie teased, but accepted a hot dog when Steve offered. He took three and savored them from a small table overlooking the chilly Atlantic.

"Just like I remember," he said.

In their wanderings, they could see some carnival rides were operating at Luna Park. Steve was absolutely thrilled to spot the Cyclone, a ride he remembered fondly, even though it usually made him sick.

"We've got to go!" he said, ponying up the ticket price as if he'd been using credit cards all his life.

"No, I don't want a day pass," he told the ticket booth woman politely. "I just want to go on the Cyclone — for old times sake."

"Do you want to ride?" he asked Leslie.

She shook her head vehemently. "No, these arthritic bones can't take roller coasters any more, especially not wooden coasters. They really rattle my body. You have fun. I'll just watch."

The woman handed him a card that would be good for one ride on the Cyclone. "If you decide you want to go on more rides, you can reload the card at any ticket booth inside," she said.

Steve thanked her, then set off with Leslie in tow.

"What's so special about the Cyclone?" she asked. "Besides it being famous and a historical monument and all."

Steve paused and his gaze went far away. "It's about the last thing Bucky ever said to me," he said, taking deep, calming breaths as he spoke. "We were about to take — you'd call it a zip line, now — over to the moving train. Bucky joked that it was payback for him taking me on the Cyclone and making me throw up." Steve shook his head to drive away the memory. "I've got to ride it in Bucky's memory, since it's still here."

"Are you sure you want to ride that after eating three hot dogs?" Leslie teased, trying to break the mood.

Steve flashed a smile at her — somewhat sad, but genuine.

"I've got a stronger stomach now," he pointed out.

As they approached the towering coaster, their attention was caught by a mother and daughter.

"Please, Mom, I'm finally tall enough. Can we go on the Cyclone?"

The mother, who was visibly pregnant, shook her head. "I'm sorry, honey. I can't ride it and they won't let you go alone. Next time, I promise." She tapped her daughter's nose. "It's not like you're going to get shorter now."

The girl pouted, but didn't complain.

"Excuse me," Leslie said. "My nephew wants to ride the Cyclone, but he doesn't have anyone to ride with either. I can't do roller coasters any more. Maybe the two of them can go together. You and I can sit on that bench by the exit and keep an eye on them from good old terra firma."

The girl brightened. "Please, Mom?"

The mother hesitated to let her daughter go with a stranger, but it seemed safe enough.

"All right. Come straight to me when you're done," she told her girl and handed over the pass.

"Yay!" The girl faced Steve and offered her hand in a very grownup manner that made Leslie smile. "Hi, my name is Stephanie. Pleased to meet you."

Steve shook her hand gravely. "My name is Steve. The pleasure is mine."

They got in line and the women took a seat. They were close enough to hear the riders' conversation. "How come you're here instead of school?" he asked curiously. "It's not a Monday holiday, is it?"

Stephanie giggled. "No, silly. It's Wednesday. I had a dentist appointment and mom had a baby doctor appointment, so we took the rest of the day off." She leaned close. "Didn't you ever play hooky?"

"No," Steve said gravely. "I missed a lot of school because I was sick a lot when I was a kid, so when I could go, I wanted to go."

They moved out of earshot, but the mother kept her eyes on them.

"He seems like a nice young man," she said.

"He is," Leslie assured her. "He used to come here as a child and wanted to ride the Cyclone for old times sake."

"I love that ride, too," the mom said. She chuckled and half-turned to Leslie. "It's funny. Your nephew looks so much like Captain America."

Leslie's mind went blank in panic. "You don't say."

"I'm a history teacher," she explained. "There's a picture of Cap and his friend Bucky Barnes in our textbook. The girls moon over it every year." She shook her head sadly. "So tragic that they died so young."

"Yes, yes it is." Leslie was amazed she got her mouth to work. She attempted a small laugh that didn't sound right to her ears, but didn't alarm the woman who was distracted by her daughter waving from her seat.

"I named Stephanie after him," the woman confided with a chuckled. "My husband doesn't mind. He's a history nerd, too. The new baby will be James, though I don't think we'll nickname him Bucky."

"No, that's a little old-fashioned. Maybe that's why my sister named her son Steve," Leslie said. "She never said, but she was a history buff, too. But actually, he looks just like his dad." Which was true.

"Maybe there's a family connection. Steve Rogers didn't have any immediate family, but there must have been cousins back in Ireland."

"Have you seen 'Who Do You Think You Are?'" Leslie asked, trying to distract the woman with genealogy talk.

It worked and when the ride took off, that worked even better. The two women were sharing favorite moments from the series when the riders came back.

"Nice to met you," Leslie said, as the woman claimed her daughter who was chattering about how exciting the ride was.

"Say thank you," the mother instructed.

"Thank you for taking me on the Cyclone, Mr. Steve," the girl said.

"You're very welcome, Miss Stephanie," Steve returned. "It was nice to ride with someone else."

He waved as they walked away. "Nice to ride with someone besides a ghost," he said quietly to Leslie.

She took his arm. "Come on. Let's go home. I've had enough excitement for one say."

"You weren't even on the ride!" Steve teased.

"Believe me, my heart was racing," Leslie replied. Then she proceeded to tell Steve about her scary conversation.


A/N: The Avengers movie was released May 4, 2012, so I imagine this story takes place at the tail end of April. Most of the Coney Island attractions don't open until the summer, but Luna Park, where the Cyclone is, opens in March.