A Bar on 8th Street (Peggy)

[harlem_knightress]

 

Dani picked up Peggy and the pair arrived at Eight Street Bar in Harlem.

They found a table quickly enough and sat down. She remembered this bar being a nicer place once upon a time. But as she looked around at the bikers, thugs and dockworkers enjoying a drink before, during or after work, Dani saw how much Harlem had changed since her family left town. Everywhere she looked, her neighborhood had both blossmed and wilted under the span of years.

She wondered what Dad would think.

"All right, Peggy. Dish. Are you going back to the Avengers or not? And where are you staying?" she asked.
 

Comments

[theamericandream]

"Wow, other than your white half I'm the only white thing in here," Peggy commented by way of noting the makeup of the group. "When did Harlem get so...dark?" Peggy hadn't been to Harlem since she and Dani were kids, but it had seemed different then.

"What? Oh, the Avengers? Yep. Joe does not like this one bit."

[harlem_knightress]

"Harlem is forty-percent black. Try not to be that white girl, Rogers." Dani said, shaking her head.

"You know he worries about you. Even more since your injury. What do your parents say?"

[theamericandream]

"Dani? I'm always that white girl. Complete with the Pumpkin Spice Lattes." She grinned.


I'm pretty sure they're not thrilled either, though they haven't said much. I also haven't given them much of a chance to."

[harlem_knightress]

"Pumpkin Spice Lattes are bad for my chi." Dani said.

"I don't recognize half of the faces on the Avengers these days. I suppose that's okay. I'm not Avengers material and I've got my own plans now that I'm back. It's not Avengers-level stuff." she said.

[theamericandream]

"What are your plans Miss I'm Not An Avenger Chi Whatever?"

[harlem_knightress]

"I came home to revitalize Harlem. While I was gone, I saw things. I learned things about the world that I would never have learned if I'd just stayed here." Dani said.


"Harlem has been an important cultural center in America for decades. So much has happened here, so many things that illustrate the American experience. But like the rest of the world, Harlem has lost its way." she said.

"New York has more superheroes than any other city in the world. Yet it's pretty much one of the most dangerous cities in America. I'm willing to bet it's the MOST dangerous. Why is that?" she asked.

"And then I look at places like Harlem, Queens and the Bronx...and the crime rate is through the ceiling. What's happening here? Where are the Avengers? Where's the Future Foundation? They're all in the better parts of town, in their mansions and ivory towers waiting for Galactus to show up." she said.

She shifted in her chair as the bartender walked up.

"I'll have a Coke." she said.

"Someone has to set an example. My old man used to. Your old man still does. But we need people on the streets showing the common man that all of the heroes in the world aren't just guys with awesome armor or super-powers.

So I came back to save my neighborhood from itself."

[theamericandream]

Peggy sighed.

"That's going to take a lot more than heroics, Dani. It's not just about crime rates out here. It's about a lot more. Jobs, for one. Education, for another. General apathy for even more."

[harlem_knightress]

"Exactly. It's going to take people caring. It's going to take time, money and investments from those with resources." Dani said.

"But I'm already working on that. I've got a meeting with Alexander Aaron, the fashion designer, next week." Dani said.

"I'm also meeting with a city councilwoman and one of the local police captains soon. Here's hoping that I can get people to buy in." she said.

[theamericandream]

"You're going to need a lot of investment from the community itself. Energy and time, largely. A bunch of rich people dumping money is not going to go over well."

[harlem_knightress]

"That's also true. Which is why I'm opening a gym. If we give kids a safe place to come to and a place to focus their energies, it keeps them off the streets. It keeps them from having sex or doing drugs. When they start doing better, maybe their parents will buy in, too." Dani said.

"I'm nervous about it but I believe this will work. If one person cares, then another will. And another. Until everyone does." she said.

[theamericandream]

"I hope you're right about that. I'm not saying that you're wrong, I'm just saying that I'd be nervous, too. Dad comments about it alot, how no one really seems to care or want to put forth effort anymore. This is probably why I had to clean the garage all the time as a kid."

[harlem_knightress]

"My dad said the same thing. But all the times when I was away and thought about home...Harlem is where I thought of." Dani said.

"When I open this place up, you have to come in and train, Rogers. You're pretty tough. Give a few of the guys and girls a role model to look up to." she said.

[theamericandream]

"Wait, what? Dani, I'm not sure 'white girl with robot leg' is what the kids want for a role model these days. Well, maybe the robot leg part, but that's just irresponsible! I try not to encourage battles with Galactus."

[harlem_knightress]

"You wouldn't be tangling with Galactus. And strong women are good role models for everyone, no matter what color they are." Dani said.

"Think about it? I'm going to have a lot of work on my hands and I'm pretty sure it's the only way I'll get to see you once you get up and running with the Avengers." she said.

"So, how's the rest of your family?"

[theamericandream]

"I can work out here some, sure. Just don't be surprised if it isn't weird."

Peggy shrugged a little.

"Eh, about the same as always. Joe's still Joe and giving me crap."

[harlem_knightress]

"Big brothers are good for that, I hear." Dani said.

She was an only child so she didn't know.

"What's the problem now? Skirt too short? Or is he just worried about you joining up with the Avengers again?"

[theamericandream]

"More like worried that the cripple is doing things other than sitting quietly at home where she can be fussed over."

[harlem_knightress]

"Peggy, you /did/ go through a traumatic injury. No one's expecting you to be Super-Girl. I see that you're doing great. Just don't push yourself before you're ready." she said.

[theamericandream]

Peggy's face grew serious for a moment.

"Dani, I'm kind of tired of everyone talking about my injury as being traumatic and as something that completely ripped who I was before away from me and left me someone else. Here's the honest truth: I don't remember most of it the same way everyone else seems to. The part of it that was honestly the worst for me was the post-ripping off of my leg infection in the hospital. I've actually never much minded the missing leg and it's been a good while since the incident. I'm more than healed."

[harlem_knightress]

"All right. I'll try to stop thinking about it that way. I just remember how scared we all were for you back then." she said.

"So, dating anyone?" Dani asked as the bartender came by and brought them a couple of glasses of water.