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21st Century Girls

    "Just, make her feel welcome." 

    If Mari had been told that one day she would be taking such ordinary orders from a person as extraordinary as Steve Rogers, she wouldn't have believed it. Under normal circumstances, entertaining a guest was banal. Making someone feel welcome could be as easy as a faked grin and a basket of fruit. But these were not normal circumstances --unless people's guests were typically women spies over ninety who had time traveled from post World War Two England to modern-day Washington D.C.. She had mistaken Mari's crop top and shorts for a swimsuit, for goodness sake. But, as usual, Peggy had her charms.

    And they were beginning to work on Mari.

    The ghost of a smirk tugged at her mouth as the two strolled past a Victoria's Secret, a witty quip about the tacky window display leaving Peggy's lips rapid-fire. How exactly did one make a 1940s transplant feel welcome in 2014? Well, a good place to start was the basics. And Peggy had none. Only the clothes on her back. For an agency that had quite literally raised her for 17 years, S.H.I.E.L.D. was quite lacking in the hospitality department. Which brought them to the mall. 

    From all outside appearances, the two probably looked like a mother-daughter duo (Or was it sister-sister? Peggy wasn't that old, was she?) looking for a day out of the house. But Mari felt the itch in the pit of her stomach that came with the knowledge that they were being actively tailed by a team of agents sent by Nick Fury himself. Couldn't a girl have a normal mall crawl without being reminded of her clandestine roots?

    Throwing a glance over her shoulder that she hoped wouldn't be obvious, she scanned the crowd. Not a soul looked out of place to her. At least she couldn't see any of the agents that had to be present. When she looked forward again, it was Peggy's turn to smirk. She wasn't as smooth as she thought she was, was she?

    "What?" She asked, pursing her lips. "I'm just taking a look around. Malls are a sensory overload no matter what time you're from." The lie was flimsy, but it was all she had to arm herself with.  

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WHERE WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO VISIT ON YOUR PLANET?

"Home." It was said with no hesitance. She quirked an eyebrow, her lips twisting into a dry half-smile. "If a place like that exists for me."

She highly doubted that it did.