391/Reconciling the Present

Reconciling the Present
Date of Scene:	09 March 2020
Location:	Food Court: Triskelion
Synopsis:	Daniel meets Steve in the Triskelion's food court for some companionable wisdom about adjusting to the times. Steve shares little tidbits of his experience and wonders at the longevity of Oreos.
Cast of Characters:	Daniel Hastings, Steve Rogers

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Daniel Hastings has posed:
The cateria in the Triskelion is a place constantly at a dull roar of activity. It's also one of the few places that Captain Steve Rogers can go and not be approached by a fan.. mostly. Call it the reason Daniel requested a meeting there. Nothing fancy, just coffee. He had questions that he was hoping the Captain could offer perspective on. Since the fellow was the only person he knew from his era, it only made since to Dan that Steve be the go to guy. So now the good doctor is sitting in the cafeteria with a coffee before him and a half eaten bagel and schmear before him with a thoughtful cast on his face as he looks at a tablet.. scrolling through a century.

Steve Rogers has posed:
Time between his various obligations about the Triskelion's building and grounds means that Steve threads his way through the hallways on the way to the cafeteria. He's in beige slacks and a pale yellow button-down today as he appears in the entrance to the food court. A side-step to avoid an exiting grouping of agents and he spots Daniel alone at the table. It takes another minute or so for him to gather coffee and a bagel of his own and then his shadow casts briefly over the table.

"G'morning," the man offers as greeting before he pulls up a chair at the table. "Probably the most useful thing these days, the Internet...within reason." The amendment comes with a flick of brows and sip of coffee.

Daniel Hastings has posed:
"You're telling me." Daniel replies as he lowers the tablet. Apparently, he saw Rogers coming? "I know you're a busy man, Rogers, so I want to thank you first and foremost for even showing up." He quirks a smile. "And another thank you to SHIELD pencil pushers who managed to reinstate my existence. I now have a a valid Canadian passport." Dipping his chin, he takes a sip from his coffee then puts it down before leaning back in his chair. "Which then begs the question of valid employment before Immigration services come try to deport me. I was hoping to.. get your perspective. Since you've been there. Coming back from the dead. Trying to put things back together. Figuring out.. a direction."

Steve Rogers has posed:
"Not a problem," replies the super-soldier as to meeting at the table. He observes Daniel as the man resettles himself, blue eyes somehow keen without being overly-intense. It gives the impression of listening without judgement. When the reason for the coffee chat is revealed, Steve nods and lets out a sigh. Rather than lean back in his chair, he rests his forearms on the table, coffee cupped in both hands with fingers interlaced about the steaming white mug.

"'s'not an easy thing 'nd it takes some time. Not gonna be overnight that things all settle out 'nd...some things never will. Just gotta figure out how to compartmentalize some of it. Where're you at so far?" He asks to gauge the direction of his own wisdom offered.

Daniel Hastings has posed:
Daniel taps the tablet. "Civil Rights movement... war on drugs.. a few wars. I'm told the 80s was reckless commercialism." He takes a deep breath. "More.. I've got a few avenues for the future. I can teach high school science at the Happy Harbor, I'm told that SHIELD is interested in re-upping my service, and.. then there's the private sector where I'm sure I can make lots of money and get to research cutting edge widgetry.. but somehow feels empty." There's a moment where he looks at the ceiling as if soul searching then looks back to the Captain. "Brass tacks. The tone of the government being what it is.. do you trust SHIELD? With the sort of power it's wielding. Influence. It's.. another era. People are different."

Steve Rogers has posed:
Still wearing a smile barely there, knowing as it is, Steve nods agreement. "Times have changed. Some things have as well, other things haven't. I remember being more'n a little shocked that there's still the bigotry, still the class separations...that, 'nd how everyone managed to get an electrical washing machine. Oh, 'nd how Oreo cookies became something cult-like a few years back." The momentary blip of humor fades into the calm neutrality again. He considers the surface of his coffee for another handful of moments.

"SHIELD is still what I knew at heart insofar as I can tell." His gaze rises to Daniel again. "They've had to sacrifice a few things just like we did back in the war 'nd...don't agree with all of it, but it seems like responsible hands're still on the wheel. For what it's worth, haven't cheesed off Fury enough for him to stop letting me walk into his office with issues." A little huff of a laugh disappears into his cup. Ghosting, oy.

Daniel Hastings has posed:
Oh that touched a nerve. Daniel's brow furrows and his jaw clenches. "Quite." He sums in agreement. His British aplomb truly being tested. "I had a taste of that first hand not three days after coming back. A fellow was accosted by some time traveling gents trying to murder him.. which myself and a few others stopped. But then the local police arrested the man for 'inciting a riot'. This was in the mutant neighborhood and the appelation was dropped rather pugnaciously." He takes a slow deep breath and sips his coffee.

"Thank you." The cup gets put down and he looks sincerely to Steve. "You're a good man, Rogers. Always have been. It's why I wanted to talk to you. Set my mind at ease before I took the plunge back into the service."

Steve Rogers has posed:
One can see the Captain's jaws minutely grit-grit back and forth as well to hear of the tale of the outcome in that particular borough. He makes a mental note to check the formal report, down to the police members involved and any past SHIELD files about deviations in behavior in the officers.

"'m just a kid from Brooklyn," he says in a mild deflection of the compliment. Still, there's a bit of a stronger smile now. "Maybe some of my stances might appear outdated, but things like respect for humanity 'nd basic rights won't ever lose importance. Nothing's stopping you from stepping out of the service either," he notes, " -- if you can't reconcile something. Granted, I'd make a point of speaking with Fury in this case. He's not gonna ignore input, even if he gives you thirty seconds to speak before he says he's got a meeting to get to."

Daniel Hastings has posed:
Daniel can see the gears grinding in Steve's eyes, "I already got the fellow a lawyer. Took down the bloke's name. The bobby that is. I'm not sure what else I could have done at that point short of spring the fellow which would have been worse for him." The cup is lifted in toast to Rogers' next words. "And I'm the son of a piano tuner from Quebec City. It doesn't change the fact that what we fought for still has to be fought for." There's a small shake of his head that follows then he nods. "He seems like a terse chap but then I've met worse."

Steve Rogers has posed:
"Mmm..." A thoughtful if noncommital sound from the blond super-soldier seated across from Daniel. Most of the coffee disappears and then comes the sound of foil parting to reveal cream cheese. It's a simple bagel, everything by type, barely toasted, and doomed to a cuplet of cream cheese per side. The serum does like its calories.

"Fury can be a tough nut to crack, but he's an honorable man," Steve finally shares. "Good reason he's where he is in the ladder. Lemme know if you need additional assistance with submitting the officer's name," he adds, glancing up with a harder gleam in his eyes. Famously, Steve Rogers doesn't like bullies.

Daniel Hastings has posed:
"Rogers. There's not a lot of blokes left like you an I." Daniel says with a meaningful look. "I've gotten myself a phone on my own. One of those quiet pay as you go types." Someone's been doing homework. "For emergencies." Bookworm or not, he takes a pen from his shirt and writes a number down on a napkin that he slides over to the Captain. "If you're ever in a pinch. Call me. It's handy being me these days. For all that the Tessaract did me wrong.. the side effects have their benefits."

Steve Rogers has posed:
Reaching out, fingertips snag the edge of the napkin and complete its travel across the table. Steve picks it up, reads it over, and commits the number to memory even as he's reaching to pull a pen from his button-down's chest-pocket. A soft tear of the napkin in half and then he's pushing his own personal number back across the way to Daniel.

"Same to you, Hastings. That's my personal number, it'll bypass some of the security on its way to me. Just know that if 'm at the mansion, your number'll get tagged by the building's security. Nobody'll be stealing the number for crank calls, but you're already on SHIELD's radar. Nothing new." A glance up at the clock on the wall above the food court's entrance and Steve nods to himself.

"Hate to leave, but got a meeting to get to. Good speaking with you. Sure I'll see you around the halls if not elsewhere." With a final nod and polite smile, the Captain gathers his mug and his bagel before departing the table, all the better to leave Daniel to perusing the Internet in all its mercurial glory.

Daniel Hastings has posed:
Hastings doesn't precisely have a photographic memory so he'll pocket the bit of paper for memorizing later. "Cheers, Rogers." But then duty calls and the Canadian tips the good captain a snap salute as Rogers gets up. Was it proper to salute indoors in a cafeteria? No. Did he feel compelled anyway? Yes. Either way, he looks back to his tablet and picks up his coffee to read the next headline in.. dear god. The world has gone off the blink.