A Very Merry Marvel Thanksgiving

[wasafreak]

Thanksgiving hadn't been something Teddy anticipated celebrating, and even now that he's here, it feels odd. Not just the fact that his jaw is wired shut and he's got a brace on his leg, but the fact that he was invited to Captain America's house and arrived to find the original Cap and Bucky and alternate universe Peggy Carter setting up a pretty impressive Thanksgiving buffet is just so surreal. Steve greets them at the door with a genuine smile and pats Billy on the shoulder and ushers them in to get drinks, and Teddy tells himself he's paranoid and Bucky isn't shooting him and Billy a sideways look warning them off of getting caught making out in any more closets, and then reminds himself that this is real life.

Kind of.

Instead of agonizing over what an appropriate tropical island equivalent of 'nice Holiday sweater' was, he let Billy dress him (also literally, see again: brace) and thinks they made the right call- the house is all warm wood craftsman, and the three heroes already there are dressed casually but nicely, and there are old photos and some pretty incredible drawings hanging up, which distract Teddy and Billy to the point of rudeness, except Steve seems all too glad to tell them stories and answer questions. Bucky chimes in to remind him of details and it's... it's maybe the coolest thing that has ever happened, other than discovering his connection to the Avengers.

It relaxes him, and Teddy types up short phrases and sentences on his iPad when he feels really compelled to contribute, keeps "Happy Thanksgiving" on his clipboard to copy and paste it when new people arrive. It doesn't take more than an hour for a pretty respectable number of people to show up, the chatter growing in volume, and even though it's been a pretty crappy couple of months, and a pretty rough couple of years, Teddy finds himself feeling pretty good.

Comments

[daretodo]

Huh. That was easy. Who'd've thunk that actually being a grown up about this would get me out of here faster than skulking around like a stray cat. I shake his hand, firmly, smile relaxing into something a bit more genuine now that I don't think he's going to trap me here.

"Where else am I gonna go, right?"

[onlyforthedream]

"...You know you can always come here, right?" I ask him, watching his expression closely for a moment before letting our hands drop.

"Or find me at the school. Speaking of which, when you have some time, I'd like to talk to you about your photography."

[daretodo]

Annnnd just as soon as I think I'm in the all-clear, he goes and throws me a curve ball. One that I completely fumble, by the way, because of all the things I expected to be talking about with Captain America, my old job's not really one of them. I blink up at him for a second, mouth hanging open as I try to work through his leap in conversational topics, ultimately giving up, 'cause what?

"My... photography?" I say, slowly, and damn if curiosity isn't about to kill this particular cat. "What about my photography?"

[onlyforthedream]

"Well, I'm going to be working on lighting, framing, and photorealism techniques with a few returning students this year," I explain, "I was thinking, if you have time with your own classes and personal projects, we could do some kind of collaboration."

[daretodo]

"...so I understand all the words coming out of your mouth, I'm just kinda surprised they're being directed at me," I say, bluntly. "You want me to help with..." I frown. "An art class. Seriously?"

I have the time. Not a huge turn out for the school this term, at least as far as my classes are concerned, which is kinda disappointing, 'cause-- Well, science, but I've gotta color myself intrigued here.

Captain America wants my help teaching art. What has my life become?

"--is this a ploy?"