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fanesavin · 6 years ago

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The Inquisitor takes some time to ruminate on his newfound position before a friendly face gives him a small measure of confidence.

@faye-andrews

Faye had stepped into a corridor to catch her breath before she hyperventilated from all the chaos and noise. She had her head between her knees, sat on the floor in her white robes, when she the sound of boots. She fell quiet, trying to not be notice, as the figure walked by.

Fane didn’t bother stopping as soon as he had left the council chamber, what a god awful debacle. Eyes downcast he walked with absolutely no direction as quickly as he could. Anywhere would do so long as it was the furthest possible point from playing childminder to squabbling Lords and Ladies. He wasn’t sure he could take it. Ultimately, Fane walked until he came upon one of the balconies of the keep that overlooked the bay pausing momentarily he took a swig from the jug before hitching a leg over and bringing the other to join it. Not the safest seating arrangements but the stone was wide enough for a man to stand on it comfortably so sitting as he was presently wasn’t so difficult.

Faye looked up from her moment of internal panic to see the tall form of lord savin walking by. He looked… gods he looked weary. Faye couldn’t imagine the weigh on his shoulders right now. To be more or less de facto leader until another was found. How long would that take? Days? Weeks? Months?? And she’d not been kind to him either. Not that she realized how he felt about her internally, since they hadn’t spoken since… since then.

Feeling the pull of her conscience - for she truly liked Lord Savin - Faye got ahold of herself and stood. She followed his footsteps, feeling drained herself but not certain why. Other than she’d been scared out of her mind for the duration of the meeting. And holding in all that fear was physically and mentally exhausting.

Turning the corner to the balcony, sighing at the feel of the breeze on her face, Faye moved out onto the dark balcony. She froze, however, as she saw Lord Savin… sitting on the railing, legs on the wrong side of a very long drop. Her heart fluttered into her throat, and she stepped forwards. “My Lord…?” she said quietly, fearing to startle him.

Fane liked the chill of the sea breeze, it was a welcome relief following the stuffy council chamber. Combined with the wash of wine he found some of the tension finally leaching out of his frame. He let his eyes drift to some far off point, tired and unfocused. He'd been feeling that way since the previous night adding all of this on top?

He sighed, to himself mostly but also to the gods. Who had seen fit to put him in this position. He'd like a good word with whichever ones idea it was to put him here. He may have been a leader of armies of marshalling them on the field of battle but not this. He could barely keep the peace in his own household as had been thoroughly demonstrated not ten moments prior. As if his situation hadn't been difficult enough without the additional undermining of those around him. People who were meant to help and support him?

He grunted silently too lost in his frustration to particularly notice the presence of someone behind him. But when they spoke a ripple of tension went through him tension and sadness. Idly he was glad she couldn't see his forlorn features as he took a sip of his drink. "Aye? Come to give me more of a rollicking about how badly that went?" where once there may have been humour in is tone presently it was flat.

Faye knew little of House Savin or Blackspire. Only that it was a large hold with lands and people under it’s care. A great many it seemed. Faye often wondered what it would be like to have people that loved you. People that cared. People that were loyal to you and believed in you wholeheartedly. Yet what a burden it must be as well. To have that much responsibility. To have to make decisions that could affect the lives of thousands. And affect the future for generations to come. Faye wouldn’t know.

He didn’t turn as she called out to him. But neither did he plummet to his death. His acknowledgement of her presence seemed to be permission to stay if she wished. Though the humor she’d come to associate with him over their short acquaintance was gone.

“No.” Faye moved up to stand at the railing and look out over the bay. The breeze was cool and smelled of salt. She turned her face into it. “I came to say that I-.” She spoke quietly, looking out on the slowly moving lights of the ships floating at port. “I wish… I wish to help. If you’ll allow me.” Not just with the investigation into the Raj’s death, but help him as well. Whatever that may mean. An apology sat on the tip of her tongue as well, but she couldn’t quite make herself say the words. Not just yet. She was still hurt and angry. And more than a tiny bit humiliated.

There was a lot on Fane’s mind, too much honestly and while he wished to have had the opportunity to speak with her earlier. To settle their differences and apologise for how he had behaved, well, they all knew what had happened. And so here they were, or well, here he was. Nursing a drink and contemplating the path he’d led that had brought him here.

He sensed her approach more than anything in particular, not that he turned around presently, the view was pretty and he wanted to enjoy it for the time that he had it. Her iteration of her help caused him to look down at the flagon in his hand, “considering the task ahead of us, we’re going to need to get all the help we can get.” He grew quiet, more pensive as he sat there looking down thoughtfully. But before she could apologise he sat up a little straighter mulling over something.

Eventually, he lifted his head and a moment later was swinging himself back over, still perched (but the correct way) he looked at her. “I beg your forgiveness for my behaviour last night and this morn’. While I regret that I wounded your pride and hurt your feelings… I’d rather that than a hastily made decision made while utterly filled to the gills.”

Faye hummed in agreement. “I won’t lie and say a part of me wishes I hadn’t... hadn’t come back.” She gazed out over the dark water. “I’m not made for… councils and the like. No one listens anyway. Except you. And one or two others.” Though it would take more than that to make any headway on this debacle.

Honestly, Faye was still frightened. A death such as the Raj’s would call for vengeance. And although there seemed to be order at the moment, it could all fall apart at any moment. All it needed was the proper catalyst. A spark to start the fire. Faye’s family wasn’t a huge fan of fire. And it wasn’t that she thought herself overly important - quite the opposite in fact - or that she held any relevance in the grand scheme. But history always repeated itself.

Faye stayed where she was, glancing slightly aside as Lord Savin turned back to the safer side of the ledge. His apology caused her features to tighten slightly. “There’s nothing to forgive, my lord,” she said nearly before the echo of his words died out. “I should not have acted in such a manner. The fault is mine.” For thinking someone such as the High Inquisitor would ever look at her as anything but a novelty. A curious thing to be studied.

"A part of me wishes I never came here in the first place," he admitted honestly. "Perhaps the only good thing to come from this is a new friendship…" if what they shared could even be called such "but the rest?" He lowered his head, curling his finger into the stone and letting his mind wander. "It's a shame… and… I know it may not mean much but, I am sorry for how people treat you."

Fane didn't doubt her, she had good cause - better cause perhaps than most to worry. How could she not? Attacked one day and at risk the next. They all were. Who could say if they would survive the ordeal or not at all?

"Perhaps, but I should not have put you in that position in the first place" he grew quieter as he looked at her. "But… perhaps... it isn't so bad. If we make it out of this… I'd like to think that it isn't so hard for us to consider perhaps being friends, hm?" Perhaps it was wishful thinking but he needed a friend right now.

Faye nodded, giving a small smile. She doubted they would be able to remain friends, even if they wanted to. “It’s not your fault. People will always fear what they don’t understand. They’ll always find a scapegoat to blame for the next plague, famine, or death. Someone to take all the anger and fear of the masses on their shoulders, and pay for it with their blood.” It meant more than he could know, but words failed her when it came to telling him how much.

She merely shrugged, agreeing that perhaps it was on the both of them. Though Faye still felt responsible for the first of it at least. A frown crawled over her features after that, but it turned to something that was nothing if not sad. “It’s a lovely thought,” Faye said sincerely. “And I would like that. To be… friends.” If she lived through all this, that is. Though who knew what he would think of her once it was done.

Perhaps they would, perhaps not. Only time would tell on that front. Fane couldn’t foresee the future. If he could, well, none of this mess would have happened would it? The culprit would be in jail and they would all be celebrating the coronation of the High Raj. Unfortunately, they were here and that was not the case. “Then it’s a matter of helping them to understand, and I’m not saying that’s an easy task… It isn’t, but it’s not a hopeless cause.” Fane didn’t believe so at least. “And… if what I saw tonight was any indication, you’re hardly a witch compared to that… Queen.”

Fane wasn’t sure what to make of Queen Bellamy, not having spoken to her enough to form a genuine opinion. “Then… let it be so, if we make it through this…” But opinions went both ways and who knew what Fane would have to do to get the answers he needed to the questions he would have to ask. “If we make it out of this… You should come to Blackspire for a little while, see what real snow looks like hm?”

“I know not everyone hates me. I’ve met several people that are kind and who seem… genuine. I believe I might have even made an ally or two. But it only takes a few to incite to lust for blood.” Faye knew that all too well. As for the other woman, she merely shrugged. “I cannot say. Though her talk of… wolfmen… I don’t like it.” A shudder moved through her that she couldn’t control.

When he offered her to visit his home at Blackspire, Faye was taken aback. She looked at him full on for the first time since she’d come after him. Would he really want her to come? Or was he just asking because he truly didn’t expect either himself or her, or both, to survive? Either way, the offer was… a first.

“I would… I think I would like that. Very much.” If they survived. A blush lit her cheeks and she turned back to the water. “I would invite you the marshes, but it’s nothing to see. Just withered trees and fog.”

“Aye, they’re not all bad… Trying times can bring out the best in people just as it can their worst.” It was simply the unfortunate way of the world but they would make do this he believed wholeheartedly. “No, it’s curious…” he’d heard tales of course but he’d always thought them just that. Tall tales just like those whispered about Lady Lacroy.

The idea of keeping her as a friend after all this was a nice sentiment, whether they would get out of it, that he couldn’t rightly say. But he was happy to make the suggestion, considering her mention of never having seen snow. Proof that he’d been listening to the things she’d said and shared with him. Not just because he was curious but because that curiosity stemmed from genuine interest.

“Very well then, it’s settled… Though I’d say it’s hardly fair for you to visit my home and me not to visit yours…”

Curious wasn’t what Faye would call it. But she was careful with her thoughts, lest she sound no better than the ones accusing her of things that weren’t true. It would be easy to lay blame somewhere else. To shift attentions in another direction. Faye had her own suspicions about who was behind all this. But she kept her own council for now.

Faye smiled as they seemed to make some sort of tentative plans for after all this. “You’re more than welcome, M’lord. I don’t have much, but… my hearth is warm and I have plenty of wine. One thing I’ve never run out of.”

“Then, I suppose we’ll have to hope we see the other side of all this,” Fane conceded with a slight exhale. He looked at her for a moment, “it’s a kind offer, perhaps I’ll take you up on it sometime…” Fane raised his cup of wine with a small nod of acknowledgement. Unfortunately, much as he wished to linger he knew he could not. “I appreciate your company here tonight Lady Lacroy… It’s been… a welcome relief to discuss anything other than the situation at hand.” His eyes drifted back to the looming castle, what did its walls have in store for them all? “That being said… There’s no rest for the wicked hm?” much as he wish there was, “hopefully together we can solve this mystery that looms over our heads.” Pushing off the railing he lowered himself gracefully into a bow, “may the evening keep you well m’lady.”

A look passed across Faye’s face, one that might have been sadness. Or even something bittersweet. Longing for a thing that had not yet come to be. “I suppose so.” There was a moment that passed between them then, and Faye was glad when he seemed to accept the offer. “Though I fear the wine may not be as good.”

His thanks for her company was met with a small nod, and Faye swallowed as she followed his gaze up to the walls of the keep. “You’re not wicked,” she told him softly, even though she knew it had been said with humor. “The people who did this are wicked. Don’t let them convince you otherwise.” Returning the bow with a small one of her own, Faye met his eyes once more as she moved to leave him to his work. “And you, Lord Savin.”

#got scene

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imjustthemechanic · 7 years ago

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The French Mistake

Part 1/? - A Visitor Part 2/? - The Kulturhistorisk Museum Heist Part 3/? - Cutscene Part 4/? - The Marvel Cinematic Universe Part 5/? - Breathless Part 6/? - Escape at Last Part 7/? - Fox in Socks Part 8/? - Things Go Wrong Part 9/? - Downey and Out Part 10/? - Road Trip Part 11/? - Temptation Part 12/? - An Awful Reunion Part 13/? - Unreality Intrudes Part 14/? - A Call for Help Part 15/? - Loki’s Guests Part 16/? - Stan Lee Cameo Part 17/? - Reassessment Part 18/? - Midnight Invasion Part 19/? - Elevator Fight Part 20/? - Courage Part 21/? - Unwelcome Back Part 22/? - Darkest Hour Part 23/? - They Are Here Part 24/? - The Jet Propulsion Laboratory Part 25/? - Word of God Part 26/? - Avengers Assembled Part 27/? - The Houston Underground Part 28/? - Houston has a Problem Part 29/? - Onward and Upward Part 30/? - The Chi’Tauri Queen Part 31/? - Through the Wormhole Part 32/? - Prisoners Part 33/? - Arm’s Length Part 34/? - A Moment’s Respite Part 35/? - Ravagers to the Rescue Part 36/? - What Happened to Hiddleston Part 37/? - Haven Part 38/? - Steve Has a Terrible Idea Part 39/? - Can’t Be Choosers

Help from a very unexpected source.

Aarflot shooed them back into their room, and this time there was an ominous click after he shut the door. Steve immediately went up to rattle the handle, and sure enough, it was locked. He turned to Evans and gestured to the door, inviting him to knock it down. Evans nodded and approached it to kick.

“Hold your horses,” said Natasha. She gently moved between Evans and the door, and lay down to peek through the gap between door and floor.

“He’s still there,” she said, and then after a moment added, “no, he’s leaving now, but there’s a couple of others. One has seven toes on each foot, the other has bird feet. I can’t see the rest of them but I’m guessing they’re at least as big as he is.”

“Two guards?” asked Steve. “We can take two.”

“Of course we can,” said Nat. “But when we get to the bottom of the stairs there’ll probably still be a crowd there. Well-meaning fans who only know we did something cool and have no ill intentions.”

Steve sighed, because she was right – they could beat up bad guys, but not innocent bystanders. Those were the sorts of people who got hurt by accident while the Avengers were after somebody else, the very people the Sokovia Accords were designed, however misguidedly, to protect. They couldn’t fight their way through those, and Aarflot and the Crystal Captain were counting on it.

“We could ask them to leave us alone,” Steve suggested.

“Has that ever worked for human fans?” asked Nat.

Sometimes it did. Often it didn’t. And the sheer number of people who’d been waiting for them in the street suggested that news travelled very fast on this station indeed. That meant the locals knew not only about them, but about the Leviathan. Somebody might already be taking it apart or selling it. They didn’t have time to sit here.

“Then we need to search the room and fine another way out,” Steve said. “If worst comes to worst I guess we’ll just have to push our way through, but let’s explore all the other options first.”

They began looking around. There were vents up by the ceiling that blew a cool breeze into the room, but they were much too small for anyone to squeeze through. The window had a handle on it with some red writing in an alien script, suggesting that it could be opened in an emergency, but there was nothing outside except vacuum and none of them had a spacesuit. Evans opened a side door and found the washroom, but there was no way out from there, either.

“We could always just bash our way through a wall,” said Steve.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Nat said. “We don’t know what’s on the other side. It might just be another room, or it might be something vital to life support. There might be more guards posted there.”

“Thor can survive in space in the comics,” Johansson offered. “And Loki fell off the Bifrost at the end of Thor 1 and was apparently okay. Maybe one of you can go outside and let us out.” She looked at Hemsworth and Hiddleston.

They exchanged a glance. “You know, I don’t think that’s something I want to try,” Hemsworth said.

“It might work,” Thor said. “If we breathe deeply first, Asgardians can survive in space for hours.”

“I’d still rather not if I can help it,” said Hemsworth firmly. “Thanks. No.”

They continued to discuss it. Steve’s eyes went repeatedly to the last bunk, where the being called Fishlips was sleeping. Her gills were opening and shutting rhythmically and she didn’t respond to their voices. Steve stamped on the floor to see if it woke her, but she didn’t respond to that – or to the sudden thump from outside a moment later.

Everybody sat up and looked towards the door.

“What was that?” asked Evans.

There was another thump, a strangled cry, and a sound of metal being struck.

Natasha got up and went back to the door to peek under it. The others went with her, silently agreed that if anything came through the door they might all be needed to fight it. Nat got down on her hands and knees and put her cheek to the floor to look, but then a moment later rolled backwards out of the way as the door opened.

On the other side, panting and with an unconscious guard on each side of her, was the banana woman.

“Hi!” she said brightly. She came in, stepping right over Natasha, and put her arms around Evans again as she closed the door with a kick. “Where were we?”

Evans froze, and for a moment Steve honestly thought he was going to panic – at the same time as he suddenly recognized a moment of himself in this man. There’d been that blonde who’d come up and kissed him at headquarters one day. Steve had just stood there like a rock because he hadn’t known how to react. The idea of a woman forcing herself on him had been hard to comprehend, after most of his life women had avoided him like the plague. At least out here, they wouldn’t have to worry about Peggy walking in.

Then Evans rallied. He took a deep breath and said, “well, we’d just exchanged names. You’re Musa, and I’m Chri… Steve. What are you doing up here?”

“I wanted to get to know you!” she said, still holding him in both arms. “It’s not every day you meet a man who can take on a whole Chi’Tauri hive!”

“I didn’t do it alone,” said Evans. “Teamwork. Teamwork is very important. Speaking of doing things alone, though… how did you deal with those guards?” He glanced at the door. “Weren’t they a lot bigger than you?”

“Oh, I’m stronger than I look!” She gave Evans a squeeze that made him grunt. “They weren’t half as tough as the ones at the maintenance hatch anyway. Wanna find out how strong I really am?” She grinned.

Everybody else perked up at the words maintenance hatch, including Evans. “Sure,” he said. “But… maybe not here. Tell you what, think you could show us this maintenance hatch so we can sneak back to our ship without the crowd getting in our way? We can go back to my planet and have a little privacy.”

Musa giggled. “Why, Christine!” she said. “Run away with you already? We only just met!” She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, then opened the door again. “I’m game – follow me!” she said, and dashed back out.

Evans looked back at the others. Johansson gestured for him to go ahead.

“You first, Christine,” she said with a snicker.

“Are you gonna tell Bob?” Evans asked, worried.

“No.” Johansson’s smile was unapologetic.

“Are your fingers crossed?” he wanted to know.

“No!” she repeated, hands behind her back.

Steve interrupted. “Are you gonna tell her you’re too busy for that kind of relationship right now?” he asked. They could hardly take her back to Earth with them.

“Of course I am,” said Evans. “After we escape. Preferably when we’re very far away and I can do it by text message.”

Nat shook her head. “Downey was right,” she told Steve. “He’s got you down.”

“Christine!” Musa called from out in the hallway. “Are you coming?”

“Right behind you,” Evans promised. He stuck his tongue out at Johansson, who just giggled harder.

Musa was waiting in the hallway, tapping her foot impatiently. When the others emerged, she nodded and then dashed up the stairs. The whole party hurried to follow her, as Steve mentally kicked himself for not thinking of going up. How had all of them missed that? They were used to buildings on earth, where there was usually nowhere to go from the top except down to a very hard landing. What they found now was that the upper storeys of the ‘buildings’ joined another ring, further in towards the hub of the space station. On the top floor were three unconscious humanoids, all of them huge, muscular individuals with their dropped weapons lying next to them, and a dangling cord.

“Excuse me, pal,” said Musa, kicking a leg out of the way. She yanked the cord, and a folding set of stairs, similar to the sort that might lead to the attic in an old house, dropped from the ceiling. The bottom step came to rest just half an inch from one of the aliens’ faces.

“This way,” Musa said.

They climbed the stairs to the inner ring. The outer ring of the space station had been hallways with tubes and hoses in the wall. The inner one was a tiny walkway in the middle of a monstrous tangle of equipment. Some of this was clearly very old and in poor repair. Sparks dropped and steam hissed, and in places Steve could see where pipes and ducts had apparently been repaired with duct tape.

Of course duct tape was a universal thing, he thought. Stark wouldn’t have been surprised at all.

The inner ring had a few windows in it – long, narrow transparent panels that let in a bit of dim light. Other than that and the sparks, there was no illumination. When Steve paused to look out, he found that they were now on the damaged side of the planet. The molten core could be seen, glowing white-hot, and the mantle around it a cooler yellow-orange. It was a surreal thing to see, like something out of a textbook brought suddenly to life, and it made Steve doubly glad they hadn’t actually landed. He wondered what the gravity was like on such a world. Was ‘down’ still towards where the middle of the planet had originally been, or was it towards the current centre of mass, halfway through what remained? Did people away from the antipodes have to walk at weird angles?

“Hey, Musa,” said Natasha conversationally.

“Yeah?” Musa asked “Are you two a thing? Because I’ve done threesomes before. The more, the merrier!”

With Evans’ back to him, Steve couldn’t tell if the other man were blushing. He knew that he certainly was, and was grateful for the dim light in which nobody could tell.

“That’s good to know, but we’re not a couple,” said Nat. “Anyway, what I wanted to know was whether you can tell us where those Ravagers hang out. We need to ask them something.”

“Not a good idea,” said Musa. “They’re planning to sell you.”

“Sell us?” asked Steve. “You mean sell our ship, right?”

“That, too,” Musa said, “but they’re definitely going to sell you. Anybody who can do what you do will be worth a fortune on the gladiatorial circuit, or as indentured mercenaries. Especially the Asgardians. We don’t see a lot of them.”

“I wonder why,” said Thor flatly.

“You have slaves out here?” Steve asked. He would have hoped that any civilization which could build things like space stations would be beyond such things! For an insane moment he pictured himself leading a Spartacus-style revolt to free them… but that was clearly a task for another time. If Steve got started on something like that he would never find his way back to Earth.

“We’ve got everything you can think of out here,” said Musa. “It’s a big galaxy.”

“We definitely need to have a word with them about that, then,” Nat said. “And a few other things, too. Where can we find them?”

“Probably at the pubs,” said Musa. “Captain Schist’s favourite is the Gigax Galactica, but they go all over.”

“I don’t think we want to meet the captain again,” said Steve quickly.

“Or Miss Alpha-Eleven-Three,” Natasha agreed. “Or that scaly creature… I think he called it Vark.”

“Then you definitely don’t want the Gigax. It’s too close to Aarflot’s, anyway,” Musa said. “People there will have already heard the gossip. We’ll try the Blue Giant. It’s further along this way.”

Loki hesitated, leading Hiddleston to bump into him from behind. “The Blue Giant?” he asked cautiously. “What sorts of people go there?”

“All sorts,” said Musa. “Why?”

“The name probably refers to the type of planet,” Thor murmured in his brother’s ear.

“I know that,” said Loki, annoyed. “I only wanted to be sure.”

#fanfic #steve rogers #natasha romanov

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