Illya Kuryakin is a man from U.N.C.L.E (spychotic) wrote in angellogs, @ 2020-03-12 00:36:00 |
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Entry tags: | dmitry, illya kuryakin, tony stark (iron man) |
Who: Tony Stark, Illya Kuryakin, Dmitry
When: Current
Where: Tony's shop, Angel Grove
What: Illya's hunting fabric for doll clothes, and Tony reassures him that he's seen stranger things.
Rating/Warnings:
Status: Complete
The shop's got a maple table toward the front with four chairs. Or well, three chairs, and Tony fighting with clamps to glue the rung on the fourth. There's a mix of vintage this and that, between typewriters to an avocado green mixer, and some more practical second hand housewares. A suncatcher made up of old bits of glass pendants from a lamp (it was one of those jokey ones, with a high heeled leg) is over the cash register area.
It's actually warm and spring like, so Tony's shirt is unbuttoned and there is the occasional bit of blue peeking out the tanktop, but it's been such a quiet day that he's not too uncomfortable about the idea. The new fabric is folded up toward the back to the left of a pile of very bright gaudy floral comforters.
“So, he’s got fabric, some of it small scale.” Dmitry is saying as he and Illya head down the street toward the shop. It just feels rude to literally surface in people’s places, though Illya doesn’t seem to mind it, and Dmitry’s used it when he needed. Still, when it can be avoided, Dmitry goes for that middle ground of fast traveling, but NOT shocking the hell out of people.
“I didn’t even say what for.” He adds, and Illya snorts.
“You act as though it’s all that weird.” He frowns a little, going for the door. “You realize your entire career is a bit stranger than my hobby, don’t you?”
“Public Access TV isn’t that…” Dmitry thinks a moment. “...Maybe. No, what is weird about you is that you haven’t promoted yourself very far. You maintain a portfolio, but you give out zero links. No anything.”
Illya laughs and grabs the door, heading in. “Consider it that I am NOT that talented yet. But I do not mind putting in the practice either.”
Tony waves. "Hello." He pulls himself to sit up and reaches for his buttons. "I'm trying to convince something to get glued again and not look like it was used for lion taming. Sorry about the shirt. My good fan for airing the place out broke earlier, and it's a little stuffy in the back. Can I help you?"
Illya snorts at that. “Ah well, I wish you some luck with that.” Is it weird that there’s really very little trace of ANY kind of accent there? It’s not even a hint of something, more like he’s maybe from somewhere in the UK and that’d be pushing it. There’s absolutely no other hints at all there. Kind of creepy.
Or it’d be creepy if he wasn’t grinning a bit.
“Please. I have been seen in public in far worse situations than a few buttons out of place. And I’ve seen this one.” he nods at Dmitry. “In far, FAR odder.”
There’s a token protest from behind him, but he ignores that.
“Dmitry brought me along.” he says. “I’m told you have...small scale printed fabric and such. I do a bit of…”
“I brought your sketchbook.” Dmitry counters, reaching into his bag as Illya looks for a moment like he’s thinking of throttling him. Or feeding him copious amounts of wolfsbane. But just for a moment.
“Roommates.” Illya shakes his head a little. “But I have to keep him, now. You don’t get out of bloc housing easily.”
"Hey, I'm not going to -" Tony waves a hand. "I'm a guy with a weird glowing prosthetic in my chest. Small print fabric is totally normal. Come on over and see what I've got. Have you guys eaten? I can totally shut the store down for lunch and dig out some snacks, since I'm guessing you're Illya, who knows Steve."
“You’re fine actually.” Illya says, shrugging. “Dmitry is...odd about sharing my hobbies. The truth is, were I better, I wouldn’t mind, but I am not exactly there yet. I’ve done a few classes and…” He nods at that. “I AM Illya. It’s good to meet you.”
"And you." Tony points. "Tweeds are here. This sparkly one is set aside for someone. This is the 70's stuff, which I can pull down, and this is the silks. There's also some cotton and linen in this stack, but some of it isn't natural fibers."
“The 70’s stuff…” Illya’s lip quirks. “Some of it is not so far off from home.” He smirks a little. “Well, New York, at least. Several other countries. Russia had its moment too, but I know less about it at the time.” He waves a hand. “It was...not the easiest to go in and out. And let’s see, natural fibers are not a problem. It’s..not quite meant for humans yet.”
"Let me tug over some stools and a lamp, and you can see what you like?" Tony sets to work. "Are you in the market for anything?" he asks Dmitry.
“Bookshelves, actually.” Dmitry looks thoughtful. “I don’t know if...this looks like the sort of place that puts those RIGHT to use, but we’re getting a LITTLE bit of a problem. He…” he nods at Illya. “Has several of the things. I don’t read half as much, but even I have ones I want around.”
"We've got some student specials and some other ones. Over this way." Tony waves him over. "This pair's a little warped, but I think it's a big box store model, so you could buy new shelves."
“THAT sounds like that would be amazing.” Dmitry shrugs. “Warped is NOT that much a problem. WE’RE a little warped. And I sometimes destroy furniture, not lately, but sometimes, so...spending too much isn’t great.”
"Hey, I had to start from nothing. I get it." Tony dusts off a shelf. "So by bloc - are we talking Russian fluent? Or something more obscure? I've got a pile of tapes and cds in various languages."
“You know. Werewolves.” Illya says, in the most nonchalant tone anyone has probably ever used to talk about their flatmate. “He hasn’t destroyed EVERYTHING.”
“I WANT to destroy the phone.” Dmitry mutters. “The apartment phone, not either of ours. And well, it USED to be bloc housing. Now it’s just...bloc style. And it’s terrifying late at night when you’re too tired to remember which is yours.”
"Sounds like that's kind of a lot. Is there options that are a bit more cozy in the area? Or housing via folks like us? I know Yvette was talking about having apartments in her new place, but it wouldn't be the same." Tony snags his glass of ice tea and digs around for his pills. "Sorry. It's time for me to take these."
They were experimenting with metered amounts of caffeine to see about how much he needed, since most of his typical sources came with energy drinks attached or coffee.
“There probably ARE.” Dmitry admits. “At the time, it was just me and it was Saint Petersburg. Commuting's not an issue here, so coming back home...it worked. We probably COULD manage slightly better.”
“Sleeping district.” Illya nods. “We COULD move up a little. PROBABLY not one of the insanely swanky new buildings but we could manage at LEAST something from the eighties.”
"Don't have to? I'm just thinking if you've been here a while, you could look around and see what's out there." Tony leans on the counter.
“It’s not a bad idea.” Illya nods. “There may be something. I do admit. I”m spoiled by being able to live there again. It’s changed, a LOT, but in a good way.”
"Makes sense to me. I'm just -" Tony thinks about it. "I mean, I've got a place upstairs, and a job working here, but I could see ending up with a less great option."
Dmitry smiles. “If it works, it’s probably a good sign for you. We’re mostly...lazy I think.” He looks thoughtful. “And it IS a step up from some places I’ve lived, when I was, literally when, I was home. You know, I haven’t had to steal anything in over two years?”
"I was freshly back from being a hostage when I got here. So I kind of get it? Was never in a position where I had to steal to survive, but wasn't in the best place." Tony smiles back at him. "It's not lazy? I've got a chance to make choices without it being life or death and I'm going to take it."
“It was a VASTLY different time.” Dmitry admits. “It’s easier here, that’s for certain. And well, given what I’ve heard from other people? My life could PROBABLY have been worse. I had a couple friends, I got lucky. Well, one more than others, but still. Connections. You’d be surprised how easily underground bonds WORK. And hey, those ARE the good chances.”
“Hostage situations.” Illya’s been making a little pile. “The worst. Even planned when you know what you’re doing, and it’s a matter of playing distraction long enough to get what you need without getting yourself killed before you are extracted. I don’t refuse to do them, they’re not especially TRAUMATIC in that sense, the not real ones, but I really, really, do not miss being sent on them.” He shakes his head.
“I understanding sending in the agent who actually does not have to ACT as if he’s in pain is a good idea, but it DOES get sort of old. I’d like to rescue someone at work for a change. Always the princess, never the prince.” he jokes.
"That's terrible. Even if you're good at it, it's not fair to go 'ah, play up stereotypes' all the time." Tony pulls over his chair so he can sit and watch them explore. "But I'm terrible. I've been mostly working here and reading bad novels that I borrowed from the shelf, instead of being even a princess for anything bigger."
“It IS a matter of needs must, I suppose.” Illya looks thoughtful. “There’s something vulnerable about me that lets me in and out of places more easily. I DON’T tend to be taken seriously by anyone I’ve gathered information against. It’s a strategy but it COULD be a smarter one. There’s better technology here to make it smarter. Instead of just hiding a recorder or a camera...you can hide a much SMALLER one. I think we might do well here today, if UNCLE existed.”
"You see, my main problem is that - I don't know." Tony taps his fingers. "I'm not a mutant, okay? But I think I've got a mutation or something. If you leave me alone with stuff, sooner or later, I can fix it. I made weapons. I made really really good weapons. And good people died needlessly thanks to me. I made the thing in my chest, so I could live. And sometimes I feel like - I'm the weapon? I don't trust people telling me where to aim."
Illya nods at that part. “I suppose when you literally become a weapon that can be used, it IS a different story. If things were against my will, it WOULD be different.”
"It's sort of - I look at the movie me, and it's like - huh. I'd totally see myself building more and more scary stuff because people ask me to, or because I'm scared. Which I know isn't me, but it's - sort of there." Tony shrugs. "And exactly. Can't get out of it, people coaxing you to do something easy and useful but also what you don't want to do. Steve sort of told me that he wanted to do good, just - not be on the front lines, not yet, not until it was a life or death thing. He wanted to live a bit in the peace he had. I liked that. Always felt like I was earning the chance to heal before."
“I think that sounds reasonable, waiting it out.” Illya frowns. “You’ve all been through quite a lot that way. I think no one could blame you for not opening a superhero tower for everyone to move into.”
"I don't have anywhere near enough people to make up for my own failings in household management." Tony smiles back at him. "I mean, Yvette's talking about opening up a place, but it sounds like she basically is going to have a set fee for cleaners, and a contract saying that either you keep your place under control, or you agree to having it cleaned, and the apartments aren't going to be her problem?"
“Seems reasonable enough as a means to get things going.” Dmitry nods. “Sounds like a decent way to make use of a property.”
"I mean, I'm renting here. The shop's not mine. I think the owners would sell it to me." Tony frowns. "I kind of like it this way, so far."
“It’s reasonable enough.” Illya says. “Keeping a thing that works going, too. Not everyone must do the same thing.”
"I'd be a terrible spy. No subtlety, loud, asks too many questions." Tony leans on the counter. "But seriously, I do like helping out if I can for folks."
“You would be surprised with two of those.” Illya gives him a quick glance. “Who do you least expect of being caught up in something wrong? The one who is loud and obnoxious and attracting attention. Some can use that, as a distraction.”
"Other than the entire authority issues. I really hate it when it's showing that people are manipulating me. You know - the 'look at your daddy issues so you'll do what we want' stuff is frustrating." Tony shakes his head.
“Ahhh those.” Dmitry shakes his head. “People’ll exploit anything. Trust me. I did it when I needed. It’s a thing. More frustrating in a case like yours, I’d bet.”
"I'm fine with, you know - desperation play? It's worse when it's like 'good morning, here's your manipulation' that it starts to feel like I should be on a tv show talking about conspiracies. Which I mean, who am I to talk." Tony sips his tea. "Any luck on the fabric?"
“InfoWars.” Dmitry laughs. “You know. You COULD get Steve on that show. Considering. Captain America takes on that loud Jones fellow? Might be entertaining.”
“He makes energy drinks now.” Illya adds. “I saw that online.”
"I drink energy drinks for migraine related stuff, and I'm not sure I'd trust the ones that aren't just caffeine and sugar and weird herbs." Tony looks thoughtful. "Is the news worse? I'm ten years out of date, but something seems weird."
“THAT guy’s news is. If we’re talking about energy drinks in general..” Dmitry shrugs. “I like them. I use too many the couple days after a full moon, but I’m usually pretty out of it if I don’t stay in one spot. “
"Huh. I wonder if electrolyte replacement stuff would help." Tony looks thoughtful. "I'm guessing you know you, but I'm wondering if some of the exhaustion might be treated kind of like medical exhaustion."
“It’s sort of an overexertion type of thing, yes.” Dmitry nods. “The feeling runners get after a marathon, I’d suspect. So...it IS likely that’d help. I do try to keep up fluids. They’re important.”
"Might not hurt to talk to a doctor about ideas? Being really tired seems like something that could be treatable." Tony shrugs. "I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"
“Nothing, really.” Dmitry muses. “Well, a LOT but...It’s just a little weird, wondering if I should be seeing a vet instead. But no, it’s worth asking Cath about. He’s been a wolf his entire life. He might have ideas of someone to see here.”
"I mean, use the marathon analogy? I don't know. I just think Combeferre might have ideas." Tony gestures. "Let's face it. You know yourself and what you like. I'm just saying that there might be options, using human medicine concepts."
“He probably WOULD.” Dmitry nods. “I just mean, if someone who IS a wolf from the same place knows something that’d be a waste of Combeferre’s time...otherwise, I don’t mind working with him at all. He knows his stuff. And apparently he doesn’t think it’s completely insane that I’m in love with someone I can never hope to see, let alone get close to.”
"Doesn't seem weird to me? Probably not healthy if you think you can't be happy before you meet the person, but that's more self worth stuff versus love matches." Tony leans on the counter. "I was pretty lonely before I got here, and I definitely feel it sometimes."
“Probably not.” Dmitry nods. “But I mean, it’s more of a...destiny type of thing. And now the destiny’s not happening. I mean, I’ve managed to survive, and I’m good. It’s just a...the feeling you get when you see someone and you just KNOW they’re going to be important, personally, not in any other schemes. “ He smiles, and it’s a little wistful, but not especially sad. “It does seem ridiculous. I was TEN when our eyes met once, but...I don’t know. It stands out.”
"Sounds honestly romantic?" Tony tilts his head. "Nothing wrong with that."
Dmitry has to laugh a bit. “I think that IS probably the essence of weird romantic things, but…” He grins anyway, sheepishly. “I bowed once in my life. It was for her.”
"I don't really have anything like that." Tony says. "I mean, it was weird when I got here, and I couldn't quite tell if Steve was trying to flirt, but that's not the same at all."
“I haven’t either.” Illya says “Not, well. It was the sixties. If it had been more of a thing, there were possibilities with some men. And women...well. I simply wasn’t around many long enough to make the connection, though there are plenty I’d not have minded getting involved with to some degree. Nothing so explicit as that sense of it, though. Dmitry and his ‘princess’, ” he air quotes on that one, because REALLY? That’s what the media here’s chosen to call her? “His Grand Duchess, actually, are one of those stories one does not imagine often.”
"I dated people, and slept with people, but often as bad ideas, or as a bad date. I was trying, just - having issues. I had a bunch of bad choices."
“Ah bad choices.” Illya laughs. “Mine were not quite in the realm of romance, but I DID make plenty of THOSE.” He looks thoughtful. “I think the navy was a bit relieved when I went off of active duty.”
"I hadn't gotten to the point of that, but I definitely had a rep." Tony grins. "I like being just another person here. It's amazing."
“That WOULD, if you were that level of famous, or infamous.” Dmitry nods. “That’s the sort of thing a lot of people love, starting over. Mine was good for me too.”
"More rich and stupid, but also rich and with a pretty shady guy I thought I trusted. But infamous works." Tony waves a hand. "I'm talking too much about me. How are things with you two? My life's been mostly working here and dealing with my health." Pepper would totally cheer him on for admitting that his health was a thing that had to get dealt with.