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Parking is always at a premium in Manhattan so, of course, there's no parking outside the mansion. And with the gates closed so random people don't wander in to see the becoming famous Avengers Mansion, Bobby has nowhere to park his Harley. This is easily solved by forming a spiraling ramp of ice up over the fence and then back down the yard for him to ride on, the surface of the ice made deliberately rough to provide traction.
The engine cuts off and Bobby dismounts in the yard, walking toward the door leading in. "Steve! I'm baaaack. Olly olly oxen free! You hanging out here or off saving the world again?"
Sitting in a room with a side view of the lawn, Steve is reading the newspaper with daunting headlines splashed on the front page. At the sound of the motorcycle one of his eyebrows pops and the paper ruffles as he closes it. A few moments later he's at the front door with a smile on his face, "Bobby? How have you been?"
"Steve!" Bobby stops as the door opens and looks over the man standing there. "Man, you've been working out." As if Steve has never been built like a Sherman tank. Resuming his stride to the door, he extends a hand once he's close. "I'm good. Just got back to New York a few days ago. Heard you were bringing the band back. How are things going? Haven't seen you since the government broke things up." Not that the team was all that solid to begin with.
"Well, we're doing our best," Steve replies about the team getting back together. "Been some good things, been some bad. Can't complain." The thought of the government breaking up the team is a sore spot for him and he thinks about it a moment before responding. "What have you been up to?"
"Went out to California for a while. Met some cool cats in Frisco but it's not New York City." Bobby looks around the grounds and nods his approval. "Looks like you're doing well. I came by last week but you weren't around. Did meet some others though, none of whom I knew. So, is SHIELD out of the picture as well as the government? If so, I wouldn't mind getting my feet wet again in the world saving department."
"We're always looking for more people. Good people like you, so we'll take whatever you're willing to give." Steve nods as he puts his hands on his hips, "Yeah, SHIELD has a lot of good aims, but there's a lot of stuff under the table that most of us just can't get behind." He chuckles a bit and there's almost a twinkle in his eye, "I think we're a lot more comfortable being free than under the thumb of anyone."
Bobby nods his agreement. "We were never comfortable being part of SHIELD, especially since they hunted us down out of the blue." Or rather, Alex and Bobby just came along to watch his back. "Who's bankrolling you? All this takes a lot of money."
"We have a couple of people, really. Lamont and Stark pay a lot of the bills. I settled on a lot of what the Army owed me to buy this place. We've been doing the renovations ourselves in order to get a better price on the whole thing." Steve exhales and shakes his head, "What bothered me most about SHIELD was Paperclip. For obvious reasons."
Bobby shakes his head at the mention of the operation. "Paperclip? What's that?" Bobby was never actually part of SHIELD after all; he was just in the Avengers part of things and stayed far away from the rest.
"Hiring old Nazi scientists to help America build technology," Steve says quietly, the disgust pretty evident in his face. "I understand wanting to get the upper hand, especially on the Soviets, but there are issues more important than that."
Bobby makes a face at the mention of Nazis. "Wow, that was stupid. What's that saying about fleas and lying down with dogs? Yeah, I'd definitely have not been all right with that. I'm surprised you stayed with them once that started."
"I didn't stay with them too much longer after that. I was pretty close with a lot of the people there which made the decision somewhat hard, but it was pretty quick that I got out of there."
Bobby nods. "Well, glad they're not involved with this version of the Avengers then. So, if you've got the room then, I wouldn't mind joining up again. Maybe it'll go better this time." Pause. "There aren't any bureaucrats on the team are there?"
"Not that I can think of," Steve says, wondering what Bobby's definition of a bureaucrat is. "Sharon, who works for the CIA sometimes hangs out here." Steve nods, though, "We have plenty of room. That's one thing we have a ton of."
"Another government agent?" Bobby asks, making that face again. Almost as bad as Nazis. "She's not like that guy… Sousa, right? That was his name?" Not at all fond of him, nope.
Steve chuckles and shakes his head, "No, not like Sousa. She's pretty good with a gun, and comes and goes depending on what she's got going on with Langley. She doesn't try and tell us what to do if you're worried about that."
Bobby nods. "Okay, then. I'm up for another shot. So let's see… I met the bat guy, some girl named Marvel and some other girl who took off before I caught her name. You mentioned Stark and I know who that is." Who doesn't? "Who else is there? And who's Lamont?"
"Quite a few people, really. Got an alien, a couple of old war buddies and a couple of other odds and ends. It's a good group," Steve replies. "Lamont is a buddy of mine from way back."
"An alien? One of the shapeshifters who were trying to conquer the world?" Bobby asks, look dubious at that. Then again, he shouldn't judge an entire race by the actions of some. Or even most.
Steve shakes his head, "No. She looks pretty much human. She's got a teleporting dog….You know, it's kind of odd when you say it out loud. Better to just meet her yourself."
Teleporting dog? "Wait, you mean Crystal and Lockjaw?" Bobby asks. "She's not an alien, man. She was just genetically altered by aliens a long time ago. Or rather, her ancestors were. And she joined the Avengers? That's cool. No wonder I didn't see her around the… around."
"Does she come from Earth? No. By my definition, that's an alien," Steve says with a chuckle.
"Yes she does." Bobby contradicts but then pauses. "At least I think so. I'm pretty sure she does. We never got into a long history lesson about her people. I thought she was a mutant at first."
Steve shrugs, "I guess I don't really know either. But I know I'm done with it. Come on, let's go get a beer and I'll show you to your room."
"Sounds good to me." Bobby answers. "I'll be coming and going a lot when we're not off doing something but a room in the city will make that a lot easier. So will having a place to park by bike which is harder to find."