6538/Captain America: Brooklyn Tour Guide

Captain America: Brooklyn Tour Guide
Date of Scene:	16 February 2019
Location:	Brooklyn, NYC
Synopsis:	Steve Rogers takes T'Challa for a tour of his old stomping grounds.
Cast of Characters:	Black Panther, Captain America

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Black Panther has posed:
T'Challa has been exploring the city quite a bit since he has been here. Mostly on his own, which has led to some interesting times and encounters. Steve heard about one of them, a brief fight with Spider-Man before the misunderstanding of each other's identities was resolved.

He has also been asking his teammates to show him areas of town that are of interest to them. And so today T'Challa had been asking Steve Rogers about where he grew up, and if he would have time to show him about the area.

It is lunchtime, and people are moving about, most already well into their weekend routine. Quite a bustle on the street as T'Challa and Steve walk along. "I have noticed the brusqueness that New Yorkers seem to display on great occasion," T'Challa comments after looking over to where two people exchange a few curt words as one blocks the other's way. "It almost seems something they take pride in, at times?"

Captain America has posed:
"A quirk of the city, yes," Steve replies as he idly looks in the direction of the two New Yorkers exchanging terse opinions on the matter of just who stepped into personal space first. "Everyone's always had some place to be at some time and in a hurry to get there. I dunno if it's a case of the strong surviving, to use that old adage, but maybe the scrappy." The blond soldier grins and glances down briefly, self-conscious in passing. "This place used to be rougher."

He pauses out of the way of the main floor of sidewalk foot-traffic to point back towards the north of the borough. "Brooklyn Heights. That's my old stomping grounds. They used to call Dean Street the worst block in Brooklyn. The kids didn't want to join in to the sports programs the government tried to put on to keep them from...being kids." The Captain shrugs, still grinning on the slant. "I didn't think we were that terrible."

His smile wanes. "It's all pricey brownstone now. Never would've predicted that."

Black Panther has posed:
T'Challa looks thoughtful as he listens to Steve, and looks about the city. Watching the people as much as looking at the buildings themselves. "I find this city fascinating on many levels," T'Challa says in slow, precisely spoken words. "In some ways it is the opposite of Wakanda and of Birnin Zana," T'Challa says.

He motions towards the surrounding city. "Such a mix of cultures, ethnicities, and ethnic classes. Each carving out its own niche. Bumping against the others. Influencing. Being influenced," T'Challa says, pausing for a moment in the walk to look around a full 360 degrees. "I can see how so many, from such diverse backgrounds, in such a small place? That it could lead to that." T'Challa points with his finger and bounces it up and down a few times. "But, your people have also made that diversity a strength. Even their... grousing?... at each other, is something they have a shared pride in. Wakandans may argue with each other as well, but other than the various tribes, there is far more uniformity."

T'Challa focuses on the Heights then as Steve talks about some of the differences. "Are there families still in the area? Ones that you knew when you lived here? Sons, daughters, grandchildren who are now living in the same places as those you remember?"

Captain America has posed:
Steve nods, lifting his face to look better up at the city buildings rising around them from beneath the brim of his baseball cap. In combination with his bomber jacket with its thick shearling lapels, he appears fairly unremarkable out on the streets -- just another New Yorker pausing to mind his own business.

"We're all bound to disagree at some point over something, but we keep things as civil as we can manage. It's a melting pot," he agrees with T'Challa, shifting his weight to one side to allow a young woman on her cellphone to bustle past, her heels clicking on the bare and wet concrete. "And we're more proud of it than we used to be. Back in the Heights, it was a melting pot too, but there were territories. Not anymore; the families who used to live there moved out or on while I was under." The ice, he means, by the tight smile he shares. "There's a small deli still run by a family I once knew. The man's great-granddaughter and her husband own it now. Still the best sandwiches in Brooklyn," he claims with a lift of his chin, as if challenging the world to disagree with him. "Most of the buildings are gone. Some of it got torn down for the expressway. I wasn't around for that. The brownstones are worth more than they used to be these days. Lots of new faces."

Black Panther has posed:
T'Challa smiles softly as he listens to Steve talk about the neighborhood deli. "We will have to make a point of stopping for a sandwich then," T'Challa says. "It would be a nice change. To be the one showing Jessica such a place," the African says with a small grin.

"I imagine it is a mix of emotions to be back. The familiarity and the changes," T'Challa says. He watches an elderly man and woman meet up on the street, giving each other a warm hug and the kind of smiles that paint them as probably lifelong friends, before they head off into a bakery together.

"Another topic frequently on my mind. As I try to open up my country to a little more interaction," T'Challs tells Steve. Though so far still, few but the Avengers and similar allies have ever been inside the reclusive country. "I need to have a mind of what may happen. What changes may come."

Captain America has posed:
"Let's walk back that way then. If we time it right, they'll be pulling the bread out of the ovens about ten minutes before we get there," explains Steve with a hint of playfulness, as if letting T'Challa into a deeply-guarded secret. He walks at an easy if purposeful pace and glances over at the royal again as he shares his thoughts on matters of a newly-revealed country.

"Changes are gonna come, no matter if walls are built. They'll be either torn down or a door put in. Maybe I'm being overly optimistic, but you said yourself that your people are in agreement for the majority of things. That'll be one of your country's strengths. It was one of ours when I was in the war. We agreed that freedom is for everyone and tyranny...that has no place in this world." The man's chiseled jaw grits back and forth before he sighs, relaxing once again.

"It's different," Steve then reveals, more quietly. "Lots to get used to. People have been helpful though. The Internet's been useful. It's hard to keep track of the recommendations made, but I try to look up things as I can. People are still people though, and I'm grateful for this." He dimples on one side.

Black Panther has posed:
As they walk along the street, Steve might have noticed the black woman ghosting the two men, a half a block back and walking on the other side of the street. Large purse over her shoulder. Attractive. The tone that she has would easily stand out to the eyes of Steve Roger's though. She seems to be keeping a close eye, but it is aimed less on Steve and T'Challa and more on the people around the pair.

T'Challa gives a smile and rubs his hands together. "Fresh baked bread is its own sort of magic," he says. "Well, I am sorry that you were taken from your own day. But I count myself very glad to have you amongst us," T'Challa says, clapping Steve on the shoulder. "If Tony is the Avenger's... wallet? I was going to say head, but maybe wallet is better? You are the team's heart though," he says, giving a warm chuckle. Because Tony jokes are no less funny for Tony not being there to hear them.

"Janet of course is our fashion sense," T'Challa adds. "Though I only jest. For all of her enjoyment of the excesses of wealth and society... I find that she has a very good, and gentle soul to her," he comments as they make their way past a few arguing construction workers, heading on towards the deli.

Captain America has posed:
Steve can't help but laugh at T'Challa's realistic observation at the proposed pecking order of the team itself. It's a rare expression for him and twinkles in his eyes as he continues grinning. "Happy to be around as a sounding board," he allows in a quietly-stubborn aversion to being labled as the moral compass. An off-hand turn of his head allows him to take in the presence of the guard and his smile is knowing as he makes a point to look in the opposite direction in order to avert anyone's attention from his own interest in her. He recognizes her as protection, oh yes.

The king then gets a wry little half-smirk from the Captain. As they briefly pause to wait for a crossing signal in a bunching of New Yorkers of all stripes, he lets out an audible and thoughtful hum. "She's good people," he agrees briefly, squinting off at the distant intersection overtop peoples' heads. The deli's another three blocks up yet.

Black Panther has posed:
The crossing signal changes and the crowd starts forward. The two men cross, along with a host of other people. Including a few late comers who are still in the intersection when the traffic light turns green. A blare of a taxi horn sounds, while the walker still crossing in front of the cab gives a universally understood gesture back to the driver. T'Challa watches the exchange, giving a soft chuckle and a shake of his head.

"She has given me excellent advice on a few occasions recently," T'Challa comments as they walk past a sporting goods store, where a couple of kids stand admiring a window display not of football or baseball, but of E-sports. Oh how times are changing. "Speaking of which? I wish you had been able to attend the event. The Juvenile Diabetes Foundation charity. I was happy to see Jessica make it, despite the crowds. And Janet gave me a better appreciation for what it is like for her. Moving in her fashion circles."

The Wakandan king gives a slight frown. "Though I was disappointed to hear of a theft. By this Catwoman burglar? I did not notice anything. Though we did leave before very long. We might have been gone already."

Captain America has posed:
The taxi itself is eyed by Steve, if simply to make sure he doesn't have to join the little fracas to stop an incipient pedestrian hit-and-run, but nothing comes it and life rolls on as it does in the Big Apple. Rather than acknowledge the kids, he's looking across the way at a small grouping of folks gathered in line for tickets to the latest movie. Something about robots fighting aliens. How the times do change indeed.

"I heard about the theft too. A shame," the Captain agrees with a frown. "If you didn't notice anything, I might not have as well, even if I'd been there. A good burglar knows faces. Janet would have been right at home there, I'm sure. I bet she was dressed to the nines -- who am I kidding, she's always dressed to the nines. What does she always say..." He muses silently for a second. "Something about dying in the clothes you're dressed in and might as well go out looking good. Something like that."

Black Panther has posed:
Warm, amused chuckling breaks out from T'Challa at hearing that. "Oh, she was. I escorted her. And seeing her at ease on the red carpet outside was something," T'Challa says. He gets a thoughtful look. "I have to deal with press events now and then, of course. But watching her that night.." T'Challa says, pausing and giving a small motion with his hand as he tries to find the precise words to express his thought.

"I find a joy in watching someone amidst what they are passionate about," T'Challa finally opines. "I feel comfortable dealing with the attention. But I would not say I often enjoy it." They pass by a middle aged man yelling up to the second floor window. "Rose! Rose! What was it you said I should get? Was it milk!? Or butter!?"

T'Challa chuckles softly as the woman comes to the window to answer him, the pair thankfully left behind. T'Challa continues, "But I greatly enjoyed watching Janet moving in that element. It was the same as I feel watching Jessica fly above the waves. I wish that you had been there. I imagine you would not have enjoyed the press. But I wonder if you would have appreciated witnessing it as I did."

Captain America has posed:
The couple is given a quiet smile from Steve and it nearly turns into another grin, if only in mild amusement to see the antics. He sighs again and the full lungful of air gusts wispy before his face. It isn't going to snow again anytime soon, but winter lingers with a fervor. He's glad for the pockets of their coat and for how walking keeps the blood moving.

"You're full of musings today, aren't you, your highness?" he asks, looking at T'Challa side-long with another dry curl of lips. T'Challa has more of his trust than the average person on the street. He doesn't subject the man to the severely-polite mask that most folks get. "I wouldn't have enjoyed the press. You have that much right. Watching Janet in her element?" Those broad shoulders shrug beneath the aviator jacket. "Dunno. I'm normally fielding the press, unfortunately. Don't have a lot of time to stop and watch the flowers."

Black Panther has posed:
"I am always full of musings," T'Challa admits with a warm laugh. "Not thinking enough is the one complaint my sister could never make about me," he says. "Now, not thinking about what I /should/ be? She might have sometimes had a point on that one," the African says with a grin.

He stops and turns towards Steve, looking thoughtful. "You should. Take time to stop and watch the flowers. Many people go through this world with few flowers around them. But you are not one of them. I think there are blooms worth your notice," T'Challa says, following it with a gesture with his open hands that seems to suggest he does not intend to press that opinion after having shared it. He starts up walking again after. "I am thinking, roast beef today," T'Challa muses quietly, spying the deli ahead.

Captain America has posed:
"Nothing wrong with musings." Steve sounds somewhat preoccupied even as he pauses alongside the royal. "And you've got a point. Nothing wrong with stopping and appreciating the views," he allows with a firm nod and his own coda to that particular line of conversation. No wonder Bucky Barnes sighs at the man's stubborn streak. The Captain's opinions sometimes need to be pried like pearls from oysters.

"The deli specializes in roast beef," the blond soldier then lets on, his small grin returning via a 'safer' topic. "It's a family secret, how they prep it. I couldn't get anyone to tell me even if I tried -- and I've tried, once, just to see if I could. You won't be disappointed." Thankfully, there's not a crowd at the deli, and so the two men can easily get their respective sandwiches in a place known to one Steve Rogers since he was knee-high to a grasshopper.