Settle Down
"Patrol schedule?" Tommy asks outraged. "I don't do schedules."
"Well, you have to," David shrugs. "If the Avengers are gone and we are in surveillance duty, we need to make sure there's no time where the streets are unattended."
"And we can't all be out on patrol at the same time," Kate adds. "Otherwise, whenever a crisis does happen, we'll all be exhausted."
"So it's set. We're calling a team-meeting to discuss Patrol Schedules," Billy says with a nod.
"Already sent the text," Teddy grins.
Their phones ring at the same time, getting his text.
From Teddy: Team Meeting. Our Place. Bring Snacks. —T.
"Good call on the snacks," Tommy smirks.
"How else are we supposed to keep you quiet?" Billy snorts.
"Hey! I'm not-"
Their phones ring again.
From America: Busy.
They look at each other. Billy and Teddy look disappointed, Kate looks annoyed, Tommy relieved and David, as usual, suspicious.
"That's weird," he says. "Didn't she say she'd be available whenever we called?"
"I guess this doesn't qualify as an emergency," Kate shrugs, a bit bitterly. America simply seems mind-set on keeping her distance from the team, as usual. She'd really thought that'd changed by the end of their trip.
About half an hour later, they're all gathered at the boy's place. Noh-Varr's distractedly going around, looking at Billy's parents's collection of 80's music while everyone else sits around the living room. The snacks are hardly enough to keep Tommy busy for five minutes.
"Alright, so we've got to figure out what we'll do with patrol schedules," Billy re-states the obvious.
"Are we not waiting for Ms. Chavez?" Loki asks quirking an eyebrow. "If I am to be held accountable for this childish nonsense and tied to a ridiculous schedule, I at the very least require that everyone else is treated equally."
"America said she was busy," Kate answers calmly. "Probably multiverse business."
"You know that," David points out looking at Loki. "We all got her text."
"I believed you'd made her change her mind," Loki shrugs, putting up his best innocent expression nobody buys anymore.
They wait for him to keep talking, but he seems to be waiting for the question.
"And why would you think that?" Tommy finally bites in.
"Because she's in 616," Loki smirks.
"She is?" Billy blinks surprised.
"And how do you know that?" David asks.
"Doesn't matter. Magical reasons. You wouldn't understand," Loki replies with a smug smirk, perfectly knowing how his words will piss him off.
"Try me."
"Alright, boys, no fighting," Kate sighs and turns to Loki. "So she's here?"
"And very close to us, I dare say. I could track her, if you wish me to."
"I don't think that's a very good idea," Teddy says frowning. "I don't think she'd want us to."
"But what if she's in trouble," Billy asks. "I mean, she goes to the dimensions that have crisis, right? Maybe we can help... We're her team, after all..."
"Last time we thought she was in trouble it was just Loki playing us," David says with a frown.
"Hey! I am here now, am I not?" Loki asks offended.
"She can probably handle her own business alright," Noh-Varr says without looking away from the records in his hands. He respects America as a warrior, enough to trust her to be alright. Everyone else stares a little, since they weren't expecting him to be paying attention.
"Yeah, but what if she's just trying to protect you form whatever crisis she's facing?" Loki asks. He doesn't sound worried, though. Just amused.
"You know something," David says glaring at him.
"I know many things."
"So are we going to do this or not?" Tommy asks exasperated. "Just make up your mind already. I'm tired of hearing you banter."
Kate sighs. This meeting is going no where.
"Loki, can you track her?" she asks pinching the bridge of her nose. The faster they get over this matter, the faster they can actually begging discussing important stuff.
The godling smiles mischievously as his palms shine in green.
"Alright, members of our merry band, follow me!" he says standing up.
He guides them through the streets, looking at his hand every now and then as if he was following a map. They turn about four times before he halts. They're hardly six blocks away from Billy's house and there seems to be no battle going on.
"Are you sure America's around here?" Teddy asks looking around. "I expected a lot more of punching."
Loki looks around with a frown before victoriously pointing at the diner across the street.
"There," he says crossing the street and walking in.
"What? Here? She's eating instead of coming to our meeting?" Kate asks walking in after him.
"I don't see her..." Billy says looking around.
"Neither do I," Teddy agrees.
"Maybe she's not here," Noh-Varr shrugs.
"Nope. Definitively here," Loki insists looking around.
Suddenly a waitress is standing before them.
"Table for seven?" she asks energetically.
"Uh..."
"Is someone waiting for you already?" she says, noting how they're looking around.
"Was there a girl here? Alone. Probably dressed very... patriotic," Billy says.
"Nope," the girl shakes her head. She's starting to look annoyed. "So, table for seven?"
They look at each other awkwardly. David frowns at Loki but he insists and nods. This is the place.
"Uh, yeah, sure," Kate finally mutters.
They follow the girl to one of the booths. The place's decorated as a diner from the 60's, with red booths, white tables and even a jukebox Noh sends a longing look at.
"My name is Rebecca," the girl says with a big smile as they shuffle in. "Your waitress will be with you in a moment."
As soon as she leaves they keep looking around, trying to stretch their necks to see everyone's face better. There's no sign of America, though. Her thick curls and particular way of dressing would've made her stand out easily if she was there.
"Are you sure?" Teddy insists.
"I am telling you I am," Loki looks offended. "I know this spell perfectly well and my magic has recovered enough to perform it perfectly."
The waitress arrives, handing out menus monotonously.
"Hello, my name's Erica and I'll be your wa— What the hell are you doing here?"
They suddenly look up. The girl before them has her hair tied up in a high ponytail, no earrings, a simple pair of jeans, a plain white blouse and a yellow apron. Not a single star or stripe in her outfit... but she's definitively America.
"America?"
"Erica?"
"Can I have a milkshake?"
"What are you doing here?" Kate retorts.
"Wait a minute. You're working?" David asks. "Here in New York?"
"Good deduction, smart-boy," she says rolling her eyes.
"I'd like to have a milkshake, please," Loki repeats with a mischievous smile.
The rest glare at him as America writes it down making an annoyed face.
"Anyone else want something?" she asks tonelessly.
"America, what are you doing here?" Teddy insists.
"How did you find me in the first place?" she asks arching an eyebrow.
All eyes turn to Loki.
"Should've guessed," she rolls her eyes again. "Anyway, be right back."
"No, wait. You have to explain..." Billy says but his voice quickly dies down at her glare. "Please."
She lets out a deep sigh.
"Lou!" she suddenly shouts. "I'm taking five!"
"Make it two!" a male voice comes from the kitchen.
"Alright, what do you need to know?" she turns to them, her face falling back to her usual straight-to-business frown.
"What are you doing here?" Kate insists.
"Working," she deadpans.
"Why?"
"Because I need money," she grunts exasperated. "Listen, we agreed Earth-Earth and New York needed us, right? So I'm staying here for a while, until we've fixed this. That means I need money, Princess."
"So you're living at 616?" Billy asks with wide eyes. "Where?"
Suddenly America falls silent in a different way. Her eyes quickly shoot down before looking back up at him.
"Am, where are you staying?" Teddy asks cautiously, with a bit of a worried frown.
"I should get back to my job," she says quickly turning away.
"America, wait," Kate tries to shuffle out of the booth to go after her, but she's to late and America has already disappeared inside the kitchen.
She sighs once the door's closed behind her.
"Tough table?" Rebecca asks with an empathic smile.
"Nothing I can't handle," she deadpans walking to the kitchen and asking for a milkshake.
"Just a milkshake? For a table of seven? Geez!" Rebecca says following her. "Those kids look like trouble. I knew it. Specially the one with the funny hat. Geek."
"Yeah, he's definitively trouble," she snorts.
"Wait, you know them? Are they, like, your friends?"
"Uh... sure," she shrugs grabbing the milkshake. "Something like that."
"Crap. Sorry for calling them—"
"Don't worry about it," she cuts her off plainly as she walks back out.
"There," she says putting the milkshake on the table and turning to walk away again.
"Am, wait!" Teddy calls her.
She looks up, as if begging the sky for patience, before turing back around.
"We were talking about it," he says running a hand through his hair nervously, "and we think you should stay with Kate while you're here."
"What?" she arches an eyebrow.
"Yeah, we no longer have any extra-rooms in my house now that Tommy's back living with us," Billy shrugs as Tommy grins, "but Kate does have a guest room you can stay at. No point in paying for rent if you don't need to.
She blinks surprised. She isn't paying rent. She's kinda sleeping wherever she can find a place to catch some sleep.
"So what do you say?" Kate asks sheepishly.
America shoots a dubious glance at her.
"Look," Kate sighs, "I don't want to force you to come. But you're my friend, America. You said so yourself. I want to do something nice for you. Besides, you'll be closer to the team, which is the whole point of you staying in New York and," she adds, "we'll know you're alright and will stop going wherever Loki says you're at."
"Hey!" Loki looks at her offended.
America keeps her face straight, though she's starting to feel anxious. She can feel the pressure of their eyes on her, waiting for an answer eagerly.
"Okay," she sighs.
"Perfect," Kate beams. "You know where I live. You can bring your stuff over when your shift's done."
"Fine," America purses her lips and walks away.
"Well, that went better than expected," David says surprised once she's gone.
"You don't actually think she didn't have a place to stay at, do you?" Billy asks looking around.
"She didn't," Noh-Varr deadpans. "Knowing her, she wouldn't have accepted otherwise."
A grim silence falls around them until Loki breaks it.
"This milkshake's great. I'm definitively coming here often," he says with a mischievous grin. "What?" he asks when everyone glares at him. "You worry too much. This is Ms. Chavez we're talking about, remember? She'll be fine."
It's late at night when America arrives at Kate's place, but she's waiting up for her.
"You took long enough," Kate teases when she opens the door.
America gives her a sheepish smile. She's holding a small back pack on one shoulder. Literally everything she owns. The surprised look Kate shoots at it doesn't go unnoticed.
"Sorry. I was kinda busy," she shrugs.
"Don't worry," Kate says letting her in and guiding her upstairs. "Billy and Teddy just left a while ago. We were doing the patrol schedules... theoretically. We ended up watching bad movies," she snorts. "We still have to figure out what works out with your shift hours. Did you just get out now?"
"Nah. I had some business to deal with somewhere else."
Kate turns over her shoulder with a curious look, but she doesn't add anything else. The other girl eventually gives up and gestures towards the room.
"Here," she says. "This is the guest room. Make yourself at home."
America blinks surprised at the last word and turns to her.
"Thanks, Princess," she says with a small genuine smile.
"Don't mention it," Kate says and then yawns. "I'm going to bed now. See you in the morning."
"See ya," America says walking in and closing the door behind her.
Once she's alone, she lets the back pack fall to the ground and hugs herself looking at the empty walls. She walks slowly to the bed and drops heavily on it, facing the ceiling. She lets out a deep sigh and closes her eyes, wondering how the hell did she end up here. As grateful and moved she's by the team's concern, she can't avoid feeling trapped. She wonders what made her accept on the first place. Not just about staying with Kate but about this whole teaming-up-again thing.
She knows the answer.
She cares too much about those kids.
She has to save the world.
She feels trapped.