nexus_crossings | Doing Good

Doing Good

The AV field can only protect the Nexus so much.

Sure, it makes sure no one's hurt for the most part unless it's broken. And that does cut down on a lot of crime. Kinda hard to murder someone, or rob someone at gunpoint if there's no real threat to the victim. But petty theft? Pushing someone down, taking their shit, and running off? That's a huge crime problem in the Nexus. Especially with hundreds of doors to flee to other worlds and PINpoints to get back to a safe house of the thief's choosing.

And wouldn't you know it? Petty theft is one super hero's bread and butter specialty. Webbing a thief up doesn't hurt them and it keeps them from pointing away long enough to call in the sheriff or his volunteer officers to scoop up the criminal. It does leave some stolen goods unaccounted for though. Which is why there's a friendly Nexushood Spider-Man calmly walking through the plaza with a handbag and some kind of weapon in each hand. A ways back is a struggling reprobate webbed up good and snug to a tree.

Every now and then he stops and holds them both aloft.

"Hey, anyone missing these? Does anyone know who had their stuff stolen? Is there a lost and found in the Nexus?"

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Reputation doesn't seem especially relevant to Steve. Even less so here than back at home. At home, at least most of the things people think he's done are things he actually did, rather than secondhand nobility from another version of himself. Would he have made all the same choices as this other Rogers? Quite possibly, but that's only good intentions, and everyone knows where the road paved with good intentions leads.

Steve moves to help with the item as it falls out of Peter's hand, but the kid is closer and his reflexes are at least as good, so it's a pointless effort. He blinks, eyebrows raising, visibly impressed, but says, "I don't know what that thing is, but you might wanna check if it's got a safety catch engaged."

He's heard violence isn't possible here, but accidents might still be.

"Do I look like the kind of guy who'd mess with your head?" He breaks into an innocent smile, which is...a really mixed message; good job Steve. He does have a taste for gentle trolling and no qualms about using his wholesome reputation to do so, but this isn't the time for it. Besides, he's continually revising his estimation of this kid's age downward and he feels like he should Handle With Care.

"Don't answer that. No, I'm not messing with you, and it's equally confusing for me."

"Oh-right. Yeah. Of course. I was totally about to do that." Why can he not do anything but look like a total dork in front of these big awesome super heroes? It's really frustrating sometimes when his foot feels like it's perpetually in his mouth. (Being a teenager is pretty much this feeling perpetually though, so.)

"That's so weird. Have you met the other guy yet? What if he's way different? What if he's not a good guy???? I mean he looks like a good guy those are the same PSAs they had in--" Shit."-every public school and civic center type place nowadays."

Nice save, Parker.

"I'd want to know for sure it was okay. If-if it were me, I think."

He's definitely too hard on himself. Steve hasn't seen anything to judge his dorkiness on as of yet. Although some would say Steve himself is a big dork most of the time. In any case, after being on the run with mostly seasoned soldiers and spies for company, it's weirdly refreshing to talk with someone who's relatively new to all this madness.

"It's unsettling," he agrees with a grimace. "You haven't met him yet either?"

It's dumb, but he's kind of pleased to hear that. At least someone here isn't going to be viewing him through the lens of acquaintanceship with the other Steve Rogers. "You're not wrong," he says after a moment's thought. "There are no guarantees. I'm not looking forward to talking to him, even if--especially if he's exactly like me. But it has to be done, when the opportunity arises."

"Hey, what do I call you, by the way? 'That spider kid from Queens' is too long."

"I haven't met most folks here, to be fair. I did a bit of scoping the place out once before but I'm mostly still learning my way around the various areas. Things keep shifting around and moving though. It's weird. Keeps messing with my sense of direction."

He offers Steve a shrug of his bony shoulders.

"Spider-Man. That's my uh...that's my made up name." Alias, Parker. You're supposed to be smart here.

Edited 2018-08-01 23:21 (UTC)

"I haven't been here long, either," he admits. "Are you stuck here, or can you come and go?"

Either way, you may have just inherited a guardian Steve, kid. He has a lot of questions, anyway, but whether Spider-Man is a teenager or just an inexperienced twenty-something with an adorably young-sounding voice, there's enough of a connection between the two of them to make Steve feel responsible for watching this guy's back while he's here.

"Spider-Man. Okay." Steve rubs his forehead. He's never been thrilled with the superhero-alias game, but apparently it's going to be a thing no matter how he feels about it. "Just Steve is fine. Captain Rogers if you can't handle the informality, I guess."

Considering how weirdly difficult it is for Spider-Man to come into contact with some of the other familiar faces around here for some reason or another it might not be such a bad thing that this Steve Rogers wants to look out for him. Who nknows when you'll need a team up, right Steve?

"I come and go. The door to th'bathroom at the laundromat I use goes here sometimes. I keep hearing folks talk about these PINpoint things too. I haven't figured out how they work yet but I've got one disassembled I keep here to study it somewhere safely away from my world."

In a universe where surprisingly a lot of the super heroes are pretty open about their identities (at least once SHIELD ended up dissolving and the Accords came into existence) Spider-Man's opacity on his own is a bit strange. But as much as he respects Steve Rogers, this guy is firmly working under Tony Stark and that means being a wee bit careful at least for a while here.

Someone his age has a lot more to lose if he's found out.

"You're only Captian when you're in th'uniform. Got it. Probably. It's kind of weird calling you just Steve, admittedly." You know, because of the informality sure not because you're an authority figure talking to a kid that would be silly.

A team-up, and possibly a sparring partner. Steve remembers having his legs whipped out from under him. He's been more attentive since then, but it's rare for him to be caught off-guard. Young as he is, Spider-Man here could provide a fun challenge.

He'll get to that later.

"Lucky," he muses. "My door has been locked so far. I have a PINpoint, but I wanted to give it a few more days before I try that route."

Because he doesn't trust weird technology, and anyway time seems to run differently in the Nexus from what he's heard. "You...disassembled one. I can see why Tony likes you. You sure that's a good idea, though? What if there's something radioactive or poisonous in 'em?"

Guess who really is actually pretty bad at fighting and could definitely use a teacher? Spider-Man is pretty bad at throwing punches and while his kicks and dives are effective, he's a very opportunistic and reactionary fighter. He doesn't know how to press an offensive.

"Locked?? Where--I mean, where have you been staying then?" The idea of Steve Rogers of all people homeless in the Nexus is a pretty depressing thought. "I didn't want to trust tech I didn't know the first thing about. I haven't used a PINpoint yet either."

The mask might hide the boy's smile, but his entire body language speaks for him, perking up at the mere mention of Tony Stark being impressed or liking him. He really really looks up to the guy.

"That's why I did it in a safe space away from the doorways. Radioactivity is--" Well, it's a legitimate concern and much more feasible than poison, but he shakes his head all the same. "Initial readings are clean. So far it's anyone's guess how the damn things work but I've at least more or less figured out how they're built and how to repair one. More or less. I think. I was planning on testing that later today."

Wouldn't be the first time Steve has taught someone younger and smaller how to fight. Wanda didn't take to krav maga well at all, and in the end Natasha was the better choice for training her, but she went a few rounds with Steve, too. This would probably be a better match all around, since Spider-Man has a boost in physical strength that Wanda never did.

Oh, god. He sounds so concerned; that's ridiculously endearing. Steve chuckles softly. "Couch surfing. Isn't that what the kids call it these days?" He's being playful, but there are certainly enough couches in the area just sitting out; he could have a different one every night for a year and not run out. Hopefully he won't be stuck that long.

"Don't worry about me, pal. The temperature's warm, there are no biting insects, and I'm not sleeping on the ground. It's a luxury resort compared to most of the places I've been lately." Not to mention during the war.

His heart aches a little, seeing the kid perk up at the mention of Tony. He wants to ask how he's holding up, whether he's back together with Pepper...best not to, though. Tony hasn't reached out to Steve, so he has to assume he wants space. Checking up on him through his protege is probably not on.

"You think? How exactly are you planning on testing this?" Whoa, red flag. It's probably not Steve's place to get in the way of progress, but he sure doesn't want to find out this kid blew himself up after the fact.

"I mean, just..."

What exactly are you going to be able to do about this, Peter? It's not like you can just invite him to stay at your place for a while. Aunt May would freak out. Again. And it'd put your identity at risk AND he's pretty sure if Mister Rogers got in trouble again it would technically be his fault and he could get in trouble too. It's a whole ball of Nope but it doesn't stop Peter from feeling bad about the situation.

Maybe if he can get the PINpoint thing figured out he can help get Steve back home.

"I suppose that's true. There's all kinds of food around here too, not to mention doors. I wish...I mean, I wish I knew if we were from the same world. I'd just show you where the door is I use."

Spider-Man gives a weak shrug since his hands are full and he can't rub at the back of his neck to ease his nerves.

"Not with anything living, obviously. I've figured out how to store coordinates so I've got a set on one side of the street and then another set across the way about twenty feet or so. I send the PINpoint with a pen or something and see if it shows up on the other side. If yes, I've successfully fixed it." Is this why Tony likes him so much? Giving Steve headaches with his half baked science experiments?

Edited 2018-08-08 01:38 (UTC)

Steve gives him a slow smile, half touched, half wanting to laugh. "That'd be a hell of a thing," he observes. "Leave the world from Italy, pop up again in Queens? Like the scene in that Disney movie with the monsters and the tiny little girl."

Only that idea makes him picture himself stepping out of some kid's closet, and that's weird on a couple levels. "I don't need you to do anything for me, kid. Just...keep an eye on Tony. Inasmuch as he'll let you."

The explanation of his experimental protocols puts Steve's mind more at ease, and his shoulders relax visibly. "As long as you're not sending yourself. That'd be a disaster waiting to happen."

Not that this is risk-free. He considers a moment, then says, "I wanna watch this. If you don't mind. I'm not sure I trust these PINpoint things yet, anyway."

Okay, mostly he just wants to be available to put himself in the way of shrapnel should this go badly, but he figures he has a better chance of a friendly reception if he makes it sound like idle curiosity and not pseudo-parental concern.

Keep an eye on Tony, huh? Spider-Man's expression is unreadable as ever underneath the mask but he nods ever so slightly while they keep walking. He's not aimlessly wandering either--the kid seems to have a destination in mind. A certain cafe he was tipped off on by another Nexus-goer has a police officer working there who seems to be keeping an eye out on the Nexus as a whole can deal with the thief he stopped as well as point him in the direction of a lost and found where he can leave the stolen items to hopefully be returned to their rightful owners.

Once that's dealt with he gives Steve a small jerk of his head toward a coin operated set of lockers standing off to the side over by a long line of vending machines selling all manner of weird things off on the edge of the plaza.

"I keep my stuff over here." He pulls a key out and unlocks his unit before pulling out a backpack and a pair of sneakers before shutting it up again and heading off across the plaza. Man. it would be so much easier to do this if he was out of his Costume, but...hnggg. Tough choices.

"Come on. The place I've got plotted out for coordinates is out this way. I wanted a place out of the way that wasn't going to be super busy."

No matter how angry he is at Tony (and he is), and how ugly their confrontation got, Steve isn't past caring. He's probably not capable of being past caring. There are no circumstances under which he was going to let Bucky be hurt, and the chances of him ever signing the Accords, even with revisions, were slim to none, but...

Yeah. Tony was his friend. Maybe he can be again some day, if they can forgive each other.

But none of that is Spider-Man's fault, and Steve isn't going to lay it on him. He just knows Tony puts too much pressure and guilt on himself, and he needs all the people--all the family--he can get around him to make him ease off. He's a little like Steve that way.

He follows the kid patiently to the lockers, and he doesn't have much of anything on him just now so he doesn't need one of his own, but it's good to know they're there. He's not going to question the costume. It's okay if he doesn't merit seeing the young man's face yet. Either he'll earn his trust eventually, or he won't and they can still work together under wraps.

"So if this works, are you going to open a local PINpoint repair shop?" he jokes mildly. "I could design your business cards."

It's pretty clear that most of the big world politics and internal strife goes way over Spider-Man's head. And for good reason, he's really not a part of the team. Just a recruit Tony called in for backup when things got rough. Clearly used to doing his own thing around Queens by and large rather than heading out to tackle world ending crises left and right.

Which is probably for the best considering he's how old?

Just look at that baby faced nose and cheeks when he pulls his mask up enough to hold a pen he's pulling out of his backpack in his mouth while he fumbles for the PINpoint and other junk he's scrounged up in his short time in the multiverse already.

"Little premature for that yet. I'm trying to test out if I've isolated the unit that reacts with the chronogps coordinates that get stored in the device and reattached them properly. Doesn't mean I know how they work or how stable it is. There's a whole lot in these things that seems waaaaaay outside the scope of what you'd find in just any smartphone."

With the pen free of his mouth, a deluge of jargon and observations spills out while Spider-Man jots down a few things in a school notebook that are popping up on the screen of the PINpoint.

"But that would be pretty cool, huh. Having my own multiversal business."

Still a schoolkid, Steve concludes, looking at him, and he's not sure if that breaks his heart just a little bit? Because this is a hell of a vocation to get caught up in at a tender age. Guys like them--him, and Tony, and this kid--they don't retire or quit. Like the Jets in West Side Story, except with more neuroses and a responsibility to protect the innocent.

Steve doesn't get most of the technical terminology that comes out of Spider-Man's mouth, but the way he drops it tells him a lot about the young man. He's not, Steve thinks, even trying to talk over his head. It's the speech patter and enthusiasm of a kid talking about his favorite subject. (It also reminds him of Tony, except that Tony manages to sound patronizing a lot of the time, whether he means to or not).

"You may have one too many side-jobs to make that work already," he tells him with a little smile. "But you sure sound like you know what you're doing."

Spider-Man (boy, really) looks back up at Steve and there's a huge grin on his face now. He's excited to the point of beaming just to be able to try one of these experiments and even more thrilled for someone to find it interesting enough to pay attention to. It's a really raw deal being a super hero at this age. Wanting attention so badly but knowing you can't have it as yourself.

The anonymity is for everyone's safety, Peter reminds himself. Aunt May's. Ned's. It's better this way. But knowing that Steve Rogers--the original Avenger and super hero--thinks he's a smart cookie no matter if it's Peter Parker or Spider Man just fills him with pride. And yeah, it's probably best he doesn't tell Steve that. Man get's enough people looking up to a legend that's more propaganda than fact. But it's a lot simpler than that in Spider-Man's situation. Kid just really needs some parental figures in his life and he's not above assigning attachments to adults when they offer it.

He probably should be more careful just how many people he trusts though.

"Who me? I can multitask like a champ. But I'm perpetually late to everything as it is just juggling home life and this so...you might have a point." Speaking of points, Spider-Man hops back up to his feet from where he'd been squatting jotting down notes and takes a look around. The pen trick is pretty neat but it's not going to give him any new data. Oh! Peter rummages around in his backpack and pulls out the (slightly bruised) apple Aunt May had given him on his way out the door and gets to taping it to the back of the PINpoint.

"Okay. We're moving up to organic matter. I've got this thing set on a timer so I'm gonna hit the button and it should point right over there by that bench. You ready?"

Maybe there's a subtle ulterior motive here, too, even though Steve isn't usually prone to ulterior motives. If Tony's new protege is this genuinely interested in his friendship--and Steve would give it freely, either way--that's a sign that the bridge isn't so far burnt it can't be mended. Or at least that Tony feels bad enough about his own actions that he's unwilling to badmouth Steve's part in the falling out completely.

In any case, Steve Rogers has a heart, which he wears on his sleeve, and the obvious enthusiasm the kid has for this project touches it. No matter how uncertain he is at this point that he's a suitable role model, Steve is used to people looking at him as such. It's an honor and a privilege. He's going to do it justice here for the kid's sake, not his own.

"You still in school? That's important too. If you are." Oh, Steve is dead positive this kid is still in school. Probably high school. But if he keeps it vague enough that it sounds like he maybe thinks he's in college, maybe the 'do your homework' message will come across softer.

"One of these days I should go back to university," he murmurs, half to himself. He's got a two-year art degree and a half dozen honorary degrees from various U.S. colleges. If tomorrow the world were permanently safe and he had no further work to do, and he and Bucky could come home? Yeah, once they were out of therapy, he'd put them both through school.

Anyway. He blinks at the apple and smiles. "And if it comes out the other side as applesauce, we'll know something's not quite right? Sure thing, let's do this."

Steve greatly overestimates how much interaction Spider-Man actually has with said Tony Stark. The man keeps himself chronically busy to the point of overexertion and the most often Spidey talks to him is usually through Happy relaying a text that might hold some importance of things he's noticed while patrolling the streets. More than likely Tony watches what Spider-Man's doing much more carefully than Spidey even yet realizes, but as for direct contact?

Not so much.

"Huh? I uh--oh right!" University huh. God he doesn't even want to think about that. Sure, there's ESU and all but the amount of money it would cost even to get a four year degree, let alone a masters is enough to send a kid into a spiral of anxiety. "I am. Yeah."

He's beyond grateful for the change in subject. Thank god for science experiments.

"Yeah, something like that." Spider-Man hits the button and takes a step back away from the PINpoint and apple before it disappears in a tiny 'bip!' and reappears at the same time over on the ground next to Steve. It's no more or less bruised when Steve picks it up. Is the stem facing the other way? Impossible to tell really, maybe it's just turned slightly somehow.

He probably wouldn't be too surprised to hear that. Disappointed, but not surprised. It's struck him that sometimes Tony expresses affection for someone by studiously avoiding their presence. Platonic affection, at least. He's pretty sure he didn't dodge Pepper a lot when they were together (maybe they're back together now? that'd be good). But really, all the Avengers are workaholics. It comes with the territory. With every triumph over desperate odds, you win more and more and more fear--next time, you might not get so lucky, might watch so many innocent people die, because you failed--

Why do they do this to themselves? Steve supposes someone has to, but that a dismal train of thought.

"...what was that noise?" He asks when the apple transports over to him. He picks it up carefully, looking it over. "Does the device make a sound or was that the air displacing or something? Apple looks...okay, I think?"

He should have taken a closer look before Peter moved it. The bruises seem right, but if he'd paid closer attention he could make a definitive answer about the direction the stem should be facing in.

"It makes that noise whenever it moves something. It did it with the pen too."

Freaked Spidey right the heck out the first time but he's more or less gotten used to it. Spider-Man is quick to hop over to where Steve's at holding the apple aloft and his grin is huge underneath the mask even though it can't really be seen. The rest of his body language more than makes up for it.

"Nice! Oh man, that's so cool that it worked!"

"That's interesting...I wonder what causes that?"

He sniffs the apple delicately, as if to make sure it wasn't cooked from the inside out or anything, then grins as the kid hastens over to him. He's really starting to like him. "I mean, I guess if you want to make sure the molecular-whatevers haven't changed in it, I could take a bite for you and tell you how it tastes."

He's halfway joking, and he hands the apple right to him in any case, satisfied it isn't about to turn into a fruit grenade. "I'm impressed."

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Doing Good

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Leading in to Peter's next science experiments with a certain Exo

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