[Locked to Newt] October 22

[theycallmecap]

It's been a long, long day, full of physical and emotional going-ons. After he stops by to see Sharon, displaying a lot more confidence than he feels by the time he gets to his quarters, Steve wants nothing more than a long shower and some sleep, and his shoulder keeps smarting. It's still weird to him, needing sleep and hurting so much - the things you get used to after just a few years spent as a super soldier.

He frowns at his bed when he gets to his quarters; it looks as if somebody else has slept in it while he was gone. The bedsheets are rumpled and he sets them right before heading to the bathroom, but after checking that his shield is still there. The hot shower does Steve's shoulder some good, but it's covered with bruises that won't go away for a few days, at least, not even with his weakened, but still better than normal recovery rate. He's pulling on a t-shirt when the door opens (with a twinge of pain at the way he has to move his arms), and he turns around to look who it is.

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[girlintheducts]

Newt had retreated to the ducts again yesterday. But last night she had slinked into Captain Roger's room via the vent and curled up on his bed. She was convinced of her own Jinx. She'd no sooner let him be a friend and he was gone. The only consolation was his things were still there.

She had heard he was back now and had to see if it was for real.

The door to his rooms opened and she saw him, holding her breath for two seconds before launching herself at him in what would have been a tackling hug to someone lighter.

"You're back! I thought the station ate you like everyone else anditwasmyfaultfortalkingtoyoutomuch." The last spilled in a tumble of words barely understandable between the speed of them and the fact that Newt's face was half buried against him.

She was shaking with relief.

[theycallmecap]

No matter how hard to understand the words were, the sentiment behind them was obvious, and Steve wrapped his arms around Newt and let her have her fill of hugs. As long as she needed.

"I'm here, kid," he assured her, as if she needed to, with how hard she was clinging to him. "I told you I wasn't going anywhere. It's alright. I'm here now."

[girlintheducts]

Leaned back enough to take a good look at Captain Rogers face. "Where were you? All your stuff was still here."

That was a good thing. She was afraid to come back to the room and find it all gone.

"You can't say you aren't going anywhere. No false promisies. Just... I'm so glad you're alright."

[theycallmecap]

Steve isn't going anywhere without fighting like hell to get back to the people here, but that's probably not something Newt would hear without objecting that that doesn't mean that he would manage, so Steve wisely shuts up on the topic.

"I'm alright," he echoes, because repeating it will probably make it more real for her. "We went and helped some people off station, but we're all back now." He nods at his bed, his hand on her shoulder as a warm, friendly point of contact, before he moves it to tug on her hair playfully. "You my own personal Goldilocks now?"

[girlintheducts]

Newt had the grace to blush a bit. "Your bed is too hard," she sniffed.

She unconsciously had named him papa bear.

"Just because it's almost Halloween doesn't mean you have to give us a scare like that.I'd ask you to leave a note before you go off station, but I don't think this twisted place would let you."

[theycallmecap]

"I didn't mean to scare you," Steve tells her as he sits on the edge of the bed, nodding beside him so she'll take the hint and come sit with him. "We got teleported off in the middle of the night, without warning."

[girlintheducts]

Newt looked sad.

"They want to show they're in charge." She was still a kid, but she'd seen too much and had learned hard lessons. "Whoever they are."

She managed to bounce back rather quickly, however.

"So, how did you help people? Was anyone hurt? Did you kick butt?"

[theycallmecap]

Steve doesn't mind that she doesn't come and join him; he's learned to give her her space when she needed, or even just wanted. He leans his forearms on his thighs, bare feet shoulder-wide on the floor, and smiles a little.

"We definitely kicked butt," he confirms, amused by the question. "And we all got off okay." Physically, at least. Zoe had needed a little time to recuperate from her piloting stunt, and his shoulder is a mess of bruises (fortunately hidden under his t-shirt), but that's the worst of it, which means they definitely got off okay. "We were in a town called Tombstone, back in the time of cowboys." Which he expects will make her think of Brisco, but there's no helping it. "And they were getting kidnapped and killed by aliens. So we kicked alien butt."

[girlintheducts]

And think of Briscoe Newt did. It would be nice if she could imagine him back home with his horse, that wasn't really a unicorn. However, she had become more a pessimist at heart.

"Tombstone... I thik I might have heard that name before." But where she'd heard it or how was coming up blank.

Newt managed to smile. Kicking alien butt was good. She liked people who could do that. And no one was badly hurt? Not the same kind of aliens then, but good all the same.

Wait a minute... "Kidnapped? Wha... what were they being kidnapped for?" Not egg carriers, please not egg carriers.

[theycallmecap]

"Alien exploratory ship, they were -" Best not to hide anything from her, even if Steve wished that he could afford to, but she was too smart for it. "Harvesting humans, draining their life force to gain power. We made great batteries for them."

It wasn't right that a kid would get to know all this, but it was right, at least, that he could comfort her some.

"But we destroyed their ship before they could report back. That Earth should stay clean, for now."

[girlintheducts]

Newt let out the breath she was unaware of holding. Killing people was bad, but at least it was kinda clean. Hopefully they didn't suffer much.

"I'm glad you stopped them," She gave a half smile.

"Sorry I kinda crashed in here," Newt's cheeks flushed a bit.

[theycallmecap]

"Don't worry about it," Steve told her with a friendly smile. "You're welcome to crash here when I'm there, too, if the mattress isn't too hard."

He really wouldn't mind. He doesn't like to think of a kid on her own out there, so of course he doesn't mind.