riverviewlogs | OPEN | we run away, but we don't know why.

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OPEN | we run away, but we don't know why.

who: skye & you, hopefully.
what: an open search for new accommodations + closed starters in comments.
when: late july & august.
where: city-wide!
warnings: none yet.

☇ step one: find your bliss

( it's not that the community housing is bad. it's clean, comfortable, roomy even. it's nicer than anywhere skye's ever been allowed to rest her head; her assigned apartment is bigger than anything she's ever been allowed to claim for herself before. but that's just it: skye's never had a room to truly call her own before, and the thought of breaking that tradition in riverview of all places just doesn't sit well with her.

before she'd been summoned here, she'd been with shield, a cooperating asset assigned to a bunk in the bus; before that, she'd been on her own, moving from temp job to temp job while racking up hacktivist community points with the rising tide while commuting in her van. the same van that was currently lost in some shield civil forfeiture lot, probably already raided and ransacked by nerd squads looking for dirt on her anonymous brethren.

suffice it to say, skye sure as hell wished she had said van. but she didn't. at least, not yet. she was going to change that, starting with an outing to an important destination: a used car lot, one where skye begins to spend most of her free afternoons wandering up and down the aisles, ignoring the sensible four-door sedans and fuel-friendly mopeds for big square hunks of metal that might, with enough tender love and care, turn into something suitable.

should she spot someone else crossing her path, she might mistake them for an employee... or just somebody who knows something about cars. why else would they be here? )

So, if somebody wanted to hypothetically rip out all the interior shit on this and start from scratch, could they?

( if it's a bus? maybe? if it's a moon equivalent to a toyota camry? well, try not to laugh too hard in her face. )

☇ step two: make your bliss work for you

( eventually, she picks something. it's going to need work, and while skye has experience living in a van, she doesn't exactly have a ton of experience getting a van to move-in-ready status. thus, her decision to bring it — by tow truck — to the closest mechanic's bay, where she'll be spending the next few weeks hovering, offering vaguely helpful suggestions, and attempting to do her best to help (and thus, keep labor costs down where at all possible).

when she's not at the mechanic's shop, skye can be found in various retail shops, scouring for everything from electronic components to car parts to home decor, trying to slowly but surely put together the pieces of the puzzle. for those that don't interrupt her with their own concerns, and to anyone who gets roped into helping her at any stage of this project (whether it be mechanic, retail employee, or just some random passerby in the road), she'll ask a million questions, because that's just the kind of annoying person that she is. )

... so what do you think about this?

( what is "this"? depending on what she's seeking out that day, her arms might be full of anything from tacky beaded curtains to a blender that operates on the van's 12-volt port to a truly absurd pile of metal squares that look suspiciously like solar panels. none of it is technically necessary, but try telling that to skye. )

☇ step three: share your bliss with everyone else

( the van will be a project that takes up the better part of her life, but that doesn't mean she won't have time to be a human being who does other things. at least, not technically. thus: a wildcard option — if there's something you want, come holler at your girl. just don't be disappointed if conversation swerves wildly... just like her driving... )

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[ Funnily enough, Owen's here pretty much for the same reason as her. Community housing has its perks and all, but he's already been spending more and more time at Loki's cave house, being out there in the wild and all. And he really has been missing having his trailer, set up all neatly next to a bungalow or cabin in the middle of nowhere.

But the trailer is definitely an important first step. How is he gonna get it out beyond the walls? Well, that's something he'll worry about later.

He comes around one of the corners and spots Skye taking a peek into one of the vans. A smile pulls easily at his lips, and he comes closer, leaning against the van and taking a look inside. ]

Sure— I did that with my trailer. Granted, it was much bigger than this, but it's all the same, I'd think. What do you want to do with it?

( this one's bigger than her old standby back home, but bigger isn't necessarily a bad thing. having an extra axel just makes it steadier, a little easier to drive with all the weight she plans to load it down with. she could do worse... even if the outside is a horrible murky green color. )

I'm gonna live in it. ( she shrugs, fingertips picking at the peeling layer of paint above one of the windows. ) Maybe not this one, exactly, but a van. I just need to find the right one.

( this isn't her first trip. it probably won't be her last. she doesn't want to spend too much, but she also doesn't want to find a total disaster that will take all her money and then some to fix up. something in the middle would be preferred. )

My old one's back home, and apparently the portal can't just pull it through for me, so... here we are.

[ Her announcement doesn't particularly surprise him. Not that he pictured Skye being a van sort of person, but he realizes he doesn't really know much about her yet. He nods, eyes darting towards her before sweeping over the inside of the van again. ]

Yeah, you and me both, then.

[ He purses his lips, ] Well, it depends on how much money you wanna spend. Stuff's pretty cheap around here, at least, and the natives seem keen on making special prices for us. You could probably haggle for a lower price, even. I know I will— once I find what I'm looking for.

[ He's very particular like that. And much like her, he wants something that's cheap but in good condition, so whatever alterations he might want to do won't completely empty his wallet. ]

( his admission, however, does surprise her. not that she really pictured him as a white picket fence kind of guy, but he'd seemed comfortable enough in his own apartment that she didn't really get a 'must get out' kind of vibe. but, to be fair, she hadn't really been observing him for signs of van dwelling at the time. there had been more pressing matters at hand — like butterfly tattoos and getting into various states of undress.

skye considers him for a moment before turning to face him fully, back leaning against the metal frame of the van. )

I'm not starting a van village with you, raptor man, no matter how good you are at haggling.

( he didn't technically offer to haggle for her. doesn't matter, point made. )

[ He's adaptable, is all. He doesn't feel as strongly as she does about living in such close quarters with other people, but then that also might have to do with the fact that he was in the Navy. Practically no notion of personal space in shared barracks. (Which also makes him appreciate having his own space and privacy all the more. Works both ways.) ]

Ouch. Not that I was actually suggesting that, for the record, but I'd make a great neighbor, just so you know.

[ Also he's definitely not haggling for her, wow. You're a big girl, Skye, you don't need a big man doing stuff for you. Well maybe some stuff. Y'know. ]

Besides, your cute little van wouldn't make it out in the wild. And that's where I wanna go.

Uh huh. ( not entirely convinced. not entirely mad about it, either. ) Maybe I'm just being selfish. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?

( the statement's said entirely too sweetly to be genuine, artificial saccharine dripping from each syllable; even though she makes an effort to try and keep a straight face, she doesn't quite manage it. no, that laughter repressed still crinkles the corners of her eyes, a dead giveaway every time. )

Don't be rude. Maybe I was planning on putting all-terrain tires and a killer stabilizing bar on the axles for some off-road adventures. It could happen.

( it's not going to, though. at least, it's probably not going to. )

Yes, I'm sure you've grown fonder of me with each passing moment since we last saw each other.

[ She's just being sarcastic, he can tell, but he doesn't seem to mind all that much. He's not so sensitive and unsure that he'd take something like that to heart, besides— they get along well enough, but they barely got to know each other. They had... other priorities. Very nice priorities. ]

Mmhm, maybe you were. You definitely look like an all-terrain kind of woman to me. [ He probably deserves a shove for that one, or maybe a slap with how wide he's grinning. ] Do remember to drop by if your cute van ever manages to make it past the wall.

Oh, whatever. [ she could shove him, but that seems like work, so he'll have to settle for an effusive eye roll and groan combination at his bad joke. ] My cute van might just run your ass over if you're not careful.

[ it's a nice ass, though, so maybe not. ]

Not this one, though. [ the van, she means. ] I'm still on the hunt.

If it can even go past forty, sure. We'll see about that.

[ He likes to flirt with danger!!! Also cute girls it seems. But now he's just teasing her for the hell of it. ]

Oh, good. I'd have hated to be the one to break it to you and tell you— this one? [ He squints his face into a frown, making a thumbs down gesture. ]

How many have you looked at, so far?

It'll go a hundred. [ no it won't. ] And I'm going to convince my mechanic friend to program the horn to play music just to antagonize you.

[ because he seems like the kind of guy to be annoyed by van horns playing mariachi music, obviously. as for this van, she knows it's ugly, so she's not offended by the gesture. she agrees. ]

This is number four today. I'm honestly kind of over looking, but I also don't have anything else to do today, so...

Oh my God. How much cheesier can you make it, seriously?

[ Neon lights? Colored rims? Tinted glass? Spray-on flames on the sides? Seriously she'll just make herself look like a douche. And also probably give him nightmares, but really. ]

Well, the good thing is that when you find the right one, you'll know right away. Kinda like a 'love at first sight' sort of thing. If none has clicked so far, then you're not there yet.

[ So no, he doesn't think she's overlooking. It's an important decision, he gets it. ] But maybe you could take a break for today.

Oh, I could make it way cheesier. It could brie amazing... but I might have to gouda little crazy to do it.

[ RIMSHOT. ]

Are you suggesting I should play hooky from my own van search, sir? Because I am shocked, and also absolutely listening if you feel like cluing me in on your idea.

[ He groans and covers his face, trying to hide his grin and suppress a laugh. He's not entirely successful. Why is he laughing at dumb puns? Why does he think it's funny and cute?? You're a monster, Skye. ]

Well, I'd feel pretty lame suggesting drinks again, but we could do something else, if you want. Lunch? [ He shrugs. ] Or I could show you around the zoo. I got a job there, so— exclusive opportunity to get much closer to some of the animals there.

[ because everyone loves dumb puns, that's why! you can't stop the ~~beat~~ bad jokes, owen, don't even try. ]

I mean, you did buy me a giant drink last time, I could probably take up the lunch tab for you this time around. [ see? she's so generous! ] If you promise to introduce me to some super cool animal friends.

[ #casualsuggestions... ]

It's basically my life goal to hang out with an elephant, you know.

That's not a bad trade, actually. I'll take you up on it. [ He'd have introduced her to some super cool animals either way, but he won't say no to getting a free lunch out of it. ]

Does a baby elephant count? Because we do have one of those. [ Well, an alien-ish elephant, but it's close enough. And safer than a wild adult elephant. ]

[Skye will probably (and not for the first time) be scared silly when a particular boy in red and blue spandex trickles down from above on a spider's web. He lets out a big relieved sigh, just to sugar the top; hope you're not somewhere in there where you'll hit your head!]

What a relief!

I thought for sure you'd be a drug dealing van and I'd have to bust you!!

[Hi, Skye, I'm quipping to hide my misery, how's it going?]

( she's going to kill him. kind-of-avenger or not, if he continues this path of scaring the shit out of her out of nowhere, skye's going to have to quake his spandex-clad ass into the ground. he's just lucky she'd been smart enough to not whack her head on the ceiling of the van. )

For fuck's sake, Spider Dude!

( no, he does not deserve the polite dignity of his accurate super-identity. spider dude or bust. )

What part of "don't sneak up on people" was difficult for you?

Man, Spider-Dude was such a missed opportunity for me, huh?

[He flips to land, thankful there's no muffin involved.]

Sorry, I just kinda forget! Too many hours of sneaking up on people, you know?

[His head sort of pecks around, like he's a chicken trying to look into her van.]

... Is this a drug dealing van?

Yes. Total missed opportunity.

( in the most exhausted voice ever: ) And no, it's not a drug van. And I don't have candy to lure kids in, either.

( the van, as it stands right now, is mostly a hot mess. there's walls up at this point, but none of the furnishings are set in place, and she's missing all the comforts that make a van work as a place to live. )

... Aw, man, I was hoping for candy. [He practically crawls right into the van anyway, simultaneously a kidnapper's dream come true and worst nightmare all in one spandex-y go.] So what's the deal, then? Are you just into fixing up old cars? Or are you doing top secret SHIELD stuff in Riverview? Can I be your eyes in the sky? I'll be like a life-sized Droney.

( deep sigh. spider children are not supposed to be in the van. nobody's supposed to be in the van. it's not even a livable van yet, let alone one for luring nosy kids in! )

I'm going to live in it.

( and with that, skye shoves a mountain of unsorted soft things — pillows, blankets, sheer and opaque curtains, the like — into a pile on the far side. a pile that blocks a bunch of other less safe and snuggly stuff she's not ready for anybody (let alone peter) to go through. )

SHIELD's not a thing in Riverview, you know that. I'm not ( a pause, a pinch on the bridge of her nose ) buddy-buddy with the Avengers like you are.

( wait, hold up. did he say droney? ) What the fuck is a Droney? ( it's a drone, obviously. but why is it named droney? )

[He flops over against the pillows and blankets inside, looking way too chill in such a ridiculous outfit.]

Oh, Droney is this little spider on my chest. He's my reconnaissance buddy.

[Said so casually, nbd. More importantly-]

You're seriously gonna live in a van? Isn't it, like... claustrophobic? And that's coming from a NYC kid.

( since when did spider children have drones implanted into their super gear? skye was lucky enough to have some prototype gauntlets tucked away, but back home, she would have been breaking into a maker shop to 3d-print some jerry-rigged shit. spider dude was clearly selling his "almost avengers" status short here. )

You're ridiculous, you know that?

( says the girl who wants to live in a van. )

The van's good, though. I did it before. Not here, obviously, but back home. It's ... cozy. More importantly, it's mine.

( fuck the moon equivalent of the home owner's association, basically. )

[Maybe just a little sold short. But Mr. Stark is also secretly a helicopter parent when it comes to Spider-Manning.]

I guess I can't really argue any of that.

... But where're you gonna take showers and stuff? Running through people's sprinklers?

( a shrug. )

Gyms have showers. The park by the lake has showers in the changing rooms. Model homes have showers. ( okay, maybe that one's a joke. maybe. ) It's not that bad.

Besides, I don't really spend that much time at home anyway, except to sleep.

That's true... I haven't even been to the apartments much lately, either.

[He's kind of sleepy, so he lays back further into the blankets she's got in here.

So tired... He didn't really sleep as much as he should have, last night...]

Do you live in a van still, even with SHIELD? Do they know you're a car-hobo?

[ he should not be falling asleep in her van. it's not a place for spider dudes to be sleeping, even less of a place for small children who should be at home in their beds... but she also can't really find it within herself to jostle him awake. ]

Running on all cylinders, huh?

[ mechanic humor. she's not a mechanic. it's a joke she stole from the guy who's helping her change the oil pan. ]

My old van's impounded. Kind of the trade-off for getting caught snooping through their shit. [ could have been worse. ] Before I got here, I was bunking it — which, for the record, totally sucks. Definitely not the sleepaway camp I told Santa to bring me.

I'm greaaat.

[His spider eyes rather comically thin a little, like even they can barely keep themselves open.]

Have you ever considered an actual RV or something? It's a little bigger.

... But I guess not as discreet.

Have you ever driven an RV?

[ they're like boats on land. you can't outrun the cops in an rv. ]

Actually, have you ever driven period?

I drove a little bit!

[His hands raise from his stomach, gesturing defensively-

And then flop back down in defeat.]

But I crashed, because it's harder than in the movies. I was chasing down someone who was planning on stealing a bunch of Avengers tech to sale for profit. He dropped me in a lake once, and then he dropped a building on me after that? He was a real jerk. I think I told you about him once.

Edited 2018-08-14 21:06 (UTC)

Oh. [ yeah, that guy. she remembers hearing about him. and wanting to punch the guy in the face. that was also a familiar thing. ] Yeah, we really need to have a talk about learning to pick your battles, dude.

[ says skye, as if she's one to talk about that kind of thing. ]

Also, FYI: if you're gonna sleep, I'm gonna charge you rent.

[He hums like someone who is totally falling asleep.]

... 'Course, of course. No sleeping. Just... resting my eyes...

[Who's sleeping? Nobody's sleeping.

... His mask eyes are sliding shut, lord.]

[ poor peter. ]

You're totally sleeping, buddy.

[ but she's gonna let him sleep. just this once. don't mind her tucking him in with the tarp she'd been painting on. ]

[And thus Peter Parker slept for three whole hours in the back of some lady's weird street van.]

[if she actually knew how one of their earliest encounters had gone, she'd probably find it amusing as he did that she was showing up at his job with a piece of junk van that looked more like creeper with candy material and less like post pimp-my-ride fabulous. still, he can't really afford to say no to the work, and she's paying so it isn't like this is a charity gig.

robbie's peering under the hood as skye pops in one day to check up on the progress of the work. he nearly hits his head as she gets his attention. he wipes the grease off on his coveralls as he turns toward her.]

You know, when I agreed to help you out with this thing, I didn't think it'd be quite this bad.

( does she intentionally creep up on him in order to startle him and make him hit his head on the hood? maybe. but at least she has the good graces to look a little bit abashed when he does. )

Are you saying my baby's ugly? ( that mock affronted tone should be no stranger to roberto's ears. ) Don't be rude, she's trying her best.

( but, you know. for real, rolling right on up to peer into the engine space, acting as if she has any kind of a clue about what's going down. )

I mean, okay, she's a little messy, but she's a work in progress. Your work, by the way.

Ugly would be putting it nicely.

[he's not fooled by that tone, miss daisy. no ma'am. is his comment perhaps a little harsh? perhaps. but he knows she is just as capable of taking as she is dishing, so he's not too worried about hurting her feelings.]

Your van's more like crap on toast. It's even kind of the right color. 70's brown.

[but then she's got the audacity to critique his work and honestly? that's just not cool. not cool at all.]

Do I come over to your place and tell you how to use a computer? No. [he grabs a socket wrench and begins the task of pulling the spark plugs from the engine before turning back to her.]

Don't come into my house and judge my work. It's gonna take a miracle [or maybe just a whole lot of hours in labor] to fix.

Can you hand me that bottle on the tray?

We're going to paint the van. And by we, I mean the paint guy's going to paint the van, because I can't aim a spray hose for shit.

[ god, he's so tetchy. he sounds like the damn genie from an animated movie skye won't admit to watching every time she got the chance. (did you rub my lamp? did you wake me up? did you bring me here?) but yes, she'll bring him the bottle of who knows what. he should be happy she's so damn helpful. ]

And I wasn't judging your work, Picasso. I was just saying, she's not done yet. You can't judge the van against her future beauty.

You decided on a color yet? Are we going for unmarked white? Sleek and silver?

[thank you very much for that bottle. the spark plugs are rather stuck, annoyingly so. he squirts some of the contents onto the plugs and pops his head out from under the hood to fire a look in her direction.]

I'm not a Picasso. [he grumbles as he recalls an exhibit gabe had dragged him to once upon a time.] I'd like to think my work is a little more polished.

Good thing I'll make sure she is too.

[ he's going to judge her, but she absolutely has picked out a color. ]

Oh, definitely white. It's top Pinterest-chic and undercover drug operation in one boring swipe.

[ with reclaimed wood accents and fluffy bedding, it'll be the girliest, most #basicwhitebitch thing skye's ever owned in her life. but she has a vision, okay. it'll be great. ]

Speaking from all the experience I don't have yet but apparently will in the future... your work's not horrible. Obviously.

[ she is trusting him with this, after all. there were other mechanics here, at least some of whom would presumably appreciate this kind of large scale project. ]

Kill me. [spoken with all the eyerolling and "gag me with a rusty spoon" feeling he could muster. he hopes she hasn't picked white.]

At least tell me we're putting some pearl into that. If your van goes 90s mom without any zing I'll quit and leave this thing sitting on blocks outside the shop.

[he wouldn't, but does she know that? probably not.]

Care to clue me in on what else you're going to do in this thing? You're not really planning on living out of it are you? Like, if you're gonna live in something, why not go full on pop up camper? Winnebago? Tour bus would be awesome. [geez robbie. a van's a big enough project. why dream that big?]

No shiny shit! [ the words are highlighted with all the glaring her tiny frame can muster. ] Creamy white only. Like a cloud on wheels.

[ she has a vision and mister mechanic is not going to fuck this up for her. ]

I'm going to live in it, I told you. There's gonna be a bed behind the front seats, and then a half wall, and then a built-in minikitchen in the swing doors. I saw a guy with a set-up like this once back home at an RV show, it was great.

[ don't doubt her aesthetics. ]

Plus, I can't drive an RV. It's like driving a boat with a fucked up engine. No thanks.

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OPEN | we run away, but we don't know why.

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