Steve R and Arthur | Backdated to May 9
May. 9th, 2015 11:14 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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om_mainSteve Rogers and his quest to fight Everyone continues with Arthur.
It had been a while since Arthur had felt any real need to hide, exactly, but he'd still never been entirely comfortable in the school gym. It was useful for what it was, but there was an uneasiness that came with the fact that anyone could just walk in that Arthur had never been completely able to shake. Some things, he was just happier to play as close to the chest as possible.
The gym in the Stark building, though, was an excellent compromise. Technically there was still the same possibility, but there were so many fewer people likely to be in it that it calmed the part of his brain most likely to twitch. It helped that almost any of the people likely to be in residence he trusted pretty whole-heartedly, and any of the ones he didn't were vouched for by the ones he did. It made for a much more relaxing workout.
Then there was also the fact that it had been built to withstand far more damage than Arthur was capable of. Case in point, the heavy bag that he was just barely shifting as he swung at it.
Tony's gym was always a relief for Steve as well. The school's gym was excellent, of course, but it had always had some downsides. His workouts were
He was already wrapping his hands as he entered the gym, but, after seeing Arthur at the bag, quickly unwrapped them again and put the bindings into his bag. "Hello, Arthur," he said, in order to let him know he was there, and he dropped his bag on a bench before heading to the free weights.
"Steve," Arthur said, conversationally enough between deep breaths as he took a step back from the bag. Steve Rogers wasn't someone he knew all that well, but Eames seemed to adore him. For Arthur, that was good enough most days. "Am I in your way?"
"Nope. I'll need to get in their eventually, but take your time. I've got other stuff I can do first." He started piling weights onto one side of a bar, letting it reach 500 before he started banding them together. "Don't let me bother you."
And he might have gone back to it, if he his attention hadn't be caught by just how much weight Steve was piling on. "Impressive," Arthur said, eyebrows climbing slightly.
"It's just my mutation," Steve said with a little bit of a laugh, then got in the proper stance and deadlifted it. It wasn't effortless, but he didn't seem to have any trouble lifting it and setting it back down again in repetition. "How're you doing?" he asked as he worked, glancing up from his weights to Arthur. He didn't know him very well, which might be a little strange, he was realizing now, considering they both lived in the brownstone, at least part time.
"In general," Arthur asked with a hint of amusement as he readjusted the wrap on one hand, "or at the moment?"
Steve considered with a hint of a grin, then shrugged before lifting the weights again. "Either?"
Arthur flicked him a dry look, but did at least take a moment to choose his words. He had enough of a sense of Steve to guess that it wasn't just polite conversation, but not enough to be sure what he could share. Not that Arthur was big on sharing much with anyone, but it was the principle of the thing.
In the end, he just shrugged in return. "Can't complain," he said mildly. "And you?"
"Yeah? Good to hear." He went quiet for a minute as he held the weight for a little bit, the strain enough to make speaking difficult. When he sat it down, he huffed a breath, then smiled again, edging into a smirk. "In general, or at the moment?"
The look Arthur was giving him shaded towards amused as he stepped away from the bag entirely, rolling his shoulders. "In general," he said with a hint of a smile.
The corner of Steve's mouth turned up into a smirk at the look Arthur gave him - he wasn't entirely sure whether or not Arthur was going to appreciate the comment, but he was glad to see that he had. "In general, I'm good. Ready to gradate, but other than that." He shrugged, then nodded to the bag. "Finished?"
"Yes," Arthur said, though he didn't exactly step away, instead giving Steve a somewhat searching look. "But what would you say to a live target?"
Steve's face absolutely lit up. "You want to spar?"
Apparently that was the right question. "Sure," Arthur said as he stepped towards the mats. "Powers or not?"
"Can't really turn mine off, so with." Steve rolled his shoulders and stepped up to the mat, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet. "Do I get to know what yours is, or is it a surprise?"
Arthur smiled, just a little, and wordlessly reached out to shift Steve, floating him an inch or two off the ground.
Steve's reflexes being as fast as the were, he scrambled for a moment to catch himself before his brain caught up to what was happening. One he did, he was beaming, staring down at his feet an laughing. "Well, alright then."
With an amused look, Arthur let gravity reassert itself, since Steve wasn't far enough off the ground to be hurt when he landed. "I'll try not to get carried away," he said, deadpan.
Steve just grinned. "Don't pull your punches on my account. I can take just about anything- and if I can't, I'd like to know about it." He rolled his shoulders and flexed his fists, warming himself up.
"Fair enough," Arthur said mildly, shifting a little as he let himself sink into the right mindset. As good a workout as his spars with Philip were, the idea of not pulling his punches at all was surprisingly inviting.
Which may have been why he didn't bother to wait for the first move to be made, for a change, instead darting in to throw Steve off balance when he wasn't quite prepared yet.
The move might have been considered cheating, with Steve still warming up, but it just made Steve break out in a full grin. He managed to dodge, but he didn't react as smoothly as he normally would. "Well, this is going to be fun," he said, and dove back in.
Arthur wasn't unused to going up against stronger opponents, but even that hadn't prepared him for someone like Steve. It made for one hell of a challenge, and Arthur threw himself into it with a flash of a slightly wild grin.
When he finally managed to think about something other than where the next punch was coming from, he found himself leaning against one of the walls, breathing hard. "Not bad," he said, somehow managing to sound even.
Steve wasn't quite as bushed, but he was still leaning forward against his knees, and grinned as he wiped the sweat out of his eyes. "I'll say." He cleared his throat as he straightened out, and headed straight for his water. "There's a hell of a lot you could do with a power like that, you know. If you were ever considering joining one of the teams, or something like that."
He just barely managed to contain a shudder at the idea, but Arthur smiled faintly at Steve instead. "Not really my kind of thing," he said with just a hint of dryness. To say the least, anyway. "And not everyone is needed in the spotlight."
Steve grinned back. "Certainly not. I would feel compelled to give you the 'not every part of the team is in the spotlight' speech, but I'm not joining either, so you're spared." His smile said that he realized how obnoxious he could be to some people, at least.
The huff Arthur gave might have been a laugh. "Not really a team person, either," he said with a slight shake of his head. "And somehow I suspect you're not always the best at taking orders."
Steve grinned, big and mischevious. "I take orders just fine, just so long as I agree with them." He took another swig of water. "I think Les X-Quis does good work, but I don't always agree with how Summers does it. I don't know him well, but from what I do know, I think we'd be at each other's throats." Probably best to avoid finding out, he figured.
"You're not the only one," Arthur said, tossing him an amused look. Scott's style wasn't for everyone. Maybe not most people. "It's probably a good thing."
Steve declined to comment on that, just laughed into his water as he shot Arthur a Look.
When he was finished, he capped his bottle and pushed his sweaty hair back. "Want to do this again sometime?"
Arthur took a moment to seriously consider it, absently smoothing his hair back from his forehead. It probably wouldn't hurt to get some practice in with someone who wasn't Philip or Betsy. The fact that it had been a damn good workout was almost beside the point.
"Yes," he said finally, "if you're amenable."
"Definitely." Steve grinned big and added, "I'm always looking for new people to kick my ass."
"I think I can handle that," Arthur said with a hint of a smile. "Thank you, anyway."
"My pleasure."
It had been a while since Arthur had felt any real need to hide, exactly, but he'd still never been entirely comfortable in the school gym. It was useful for what it was, but there was an uneasiness that came with the fact that anyone could just walk in that Arthur had never been completely able to shake. Some things, he was just happier to play as close to the chest as possible.
The gym in the Stark building, though, was an excellent compromise. Technically there was still the same possibility, but there were so many fewer people likely to be in it that it calmed the part of his brain most likely to twitch. It helped that almost any of the people likely to be in residence he trusted pretty whole-heartedly, and any of the ones he didn't were vouched for by the ones he did. It made for a much more relaxing workout.
Then there was also the fact that it had been built to withstand far more damage than Arthur was capable of. Case in point, the heavy bag that he was just barely shifting as he swung at it.
Tony's gym was always a relief for Steve as well. The school's gym was excellent, of course, but it had always had some downsides. His workouts were
He was already wrapping his hands as he entered the gym, but, after seeing Arthur at the bag, quickly unwrapped them again and put the bindings into his bag. "Hello, Arthur," he said, in order to let him know he was there, and he dropped his bag on a bench before heading to the free weights.
"Steve," Arthur said, conversationally enough between deep breaths as he took a step back from the bag. Steve Rogers wasn't someone he knew all that well, but Eames seemed to adore him. For Arthur, that was good enough most days. "Am I in your way?"
"Nope. I'll need to get in their eventually, but take your time. I've got other stuff I can do first." He started piling weights onto one side of a bar, letting it reach 500 before he started banding them together. "Don't let me bother you."
And he might have gone back to it, if he his attention hadn't be caught by just how much weight Steve was piling on. "Impressive," Arthur said, eyebrows climbing slightly.
"It's just my mutation," Steve said with a little bit of a laugh, then got in the proper stance and deadlifted it. It wasn't effortless, but he didn't seem to have any trouble lifting it and setting it back down again in repetition. "How're you doing?" he asked as he worked, glancing up from his weights to Arthur. He didn't know him very well, which might be a little strange, he was realizing now, considering they both lived in the brownstone, at least part time.
"In general," Arthur asked with a hint of amusement as he readjusted the wrap on one hand, "or at the moment?"
Steve considered with a hint of a grin, then shrugged before lifting the weights again. "Either?"
Arthur flicked him a dry look, but did at least take a moment to choose his words. He had enough of a sense of Steve to guess that it wasn't just polite conversation, but not enough to be sure what he could share. Not that Arthur was big on sharing much with anyone, but it was the principle of the thing.
In the end, he just shrugged in return. "Can't complain," he said mildly. "And you?"
"Yeah? Good to hear." He went quiet for a minute as he held the weight for a little bit, the strain enough to make speaking difficult. When he sat it down, he huffed a breath, then smiled again, edging into a smirk. "In general, or at the moment?"
The look Arthur was giving him shaded towards amused as he stepped away from the bag entirely, rolling his shoulders. "In general," he said with a hint of a smile.
The corner of Steve's mouth turned up into a smirk at the look Arthur gave him - he wasn't entirely sure whether or not Arthur was going to appreciate the comment, but he was glad to see that he had. "In general, I'm good. Ready to gradate, but other than that." He shrugged, then nodded to the bag. "Finished?"
"Yes," Arthur said, though he didn't exactly step away, instead giving Steve a somewhat searching look. "But what would you say to a live target?"
Steve's face absolutely lit up. "You want to spar?"
Apparently that was the right question. "Sure," Arthur said as he stepped towards the mats. "Powers or not?"
"Can't really turn mine off, so with." Steve rolled his shoulders and stepped up to the mat, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet. "Do I get to know what yours is, or is it a surprise?"
Arthur smiled, just a little, and wordlessly reached out to shift Steve, floating him an inch or two off the ground.
Steve's reflexes being as fast as the were, he scrambled for a moment to catch himself before his brain caught up to what was happening. One he did, he was beaming, staring down at his feet an laughing. "Well, alright then."
With an amused look, Arthur let gravity reassert itself, since Steve wasn't far enough off the ground to be hurt when he landed. "I'll try not to get carried away," he said, deadpan.
Steve just grinned. "Don't pull your punches on my account. I can take just about anything- and if I can't, I'd like to know about it." He rolled his shoulders and flexed his fists, warming himself up.
"Fair enough," Arthur said mildly, shifting a little as he let himself sink into the right mindset. As good a workout as his spars with Philip were, the idea of not pulling his punches at all was surprisingly inviting.
Which may have been why he didn't bother to wait for the first move to be made, for a change, instead darting in to throw Steve off balance when he wasn't quite prepared yet.
The move might have been considered cheating, with Steve still warming up, but it just made Steve break out in a full grin. He managed to dodge, but he didn't react as smoothly as he normally would. "Well, this is going to be fun," he said, and dove back in.
Arthur wasn't unused to going up against stronger opponents, but even that hadn't prepared him for someone like Steve. It made for one hell of a challenge, and Arthur threw himself into it with a flash of a slightly wild grin.
When he finally managed to think about something other than where the next punch was coming from, he found himself leaning against one of the walls, breathing hard. "Not bad," he said, somehow managing to sound even.
Steve wasn't quite as bushed, but he was still leaning forward against his knees, and grinned as he wiped the sweat out of his eyes. "I'll say." He cleared his throat as he straightened out, and headed straight for his water. "There's a hell of a lot you could do with a power like that, you know. If you were ever considering joining one of the teams, or something like that."
He just barely managed to contain a shudder at the idea, but Arthur smiled faintly at Steve instead. "Not really my kind of thing," he said with just a hint of dryness. To say the least, anyway. "And not everyone is needed in the spotlight."
Steve grinned back. "Certainly not. I would feel compelled to give you the 'not every part of the team is in the spotlight' speech, but I'm not joining either, so you're spared." His smile said that he realized how obnoxious he could be to some people, at least.
The huff Arthur gave might have been a laugh. "Not really a team person, either," he said with a slight shake of his head. "And somehow I suspect you're not always the best at taking orders."
Steve grinned, big and mischevious. "I take orders just fine, just so long as I agree with them." He took another swig of water. "I think Les X-Quis does good work, but I don't always agree with how Summers does it. I don't know him well, but from what I do know, I think we'd be at each other's throats." Probably best to avoid finding out, he figured.
"You're not the only one," Arthur said, tossing him an amused look. Scott's style wasn't for everyone. Maybe not most people. "It's probably a good thing."
Steve declined to comment on that, just laughed into his water as he shot Arthur a Look.
When he was finished, he capped his bottle and pushed his sweaty hair back. "Want to do this again sometime?"
Arthur took a moment to seriously consider it, absently smoothing his hair back from his forehead. It probably wouldn't hurt to get some practice in with someone who wasn't Philip or Betsy. The fact that it had been a damn good workout was almost beside the point.
"Yes," he said finally, "if you're amenable."
"Definitely." Steve grinned big and added, "I'm always looking for new people to kick my ass."
"I think I can handle that," Arthur said with a hint of a smile. "Thank you, anyway."
"My pleasure."
