#rip mumbo jumbo you will be sorely missed

[astrophilio]

My favorite thing during wildlife so far has been watching these men try and fail to kill Gem and Lizzie over and over and over again

[jojosbizarreblog]

Let Down Your Crystal Walls

5 // 6 // 7

A/n: I've put a content warning for some potentially triggering sexual stuff down below (cause the orangutan and all, I hate that thing).  Stay safe you guys! Love ya!

Chapter 6: Don’t Walk in the Halls Alone

Song Inspiration: 'Alone Together' by Fall Out Boys

Kyogen came to with a fading headache, quiet conversations, and the blurry face of her Stand lit by moonlight. The surface underneath her felt strange, rocking back and forth.

A boat... she was in a boat. Presumably with the others. Her clothes were stiff as she straightened out and she had a horrible headache and the shallow cuts on her skin stung.

Kyogen flinched as Joseph clambered over and clapped a hand on her shoulders. "Wind! Thank god you're alright!"

It took her a second to register the English. "Y-Yeah," she hoarsely replied, coughing after the statement. Joseph handed her a canteen and Kyogen fumbled to open it. Cool water rushed down her throat as she guzzled it down. "Everyone alright?" She slurred, gingerly touching the bump on the side of her head. "What happened?"

"Everyone is fine," Avdol said. "Jotaro managed to take out the fake captain. But it turned out he planted bombs on the ship that exploded when he died. Luckily, everyone reached the lifeboats in time."

"Ah," Kyogen said, eternally grateful that she missed out on the explosion. "Who fished me out?"

Avdol pointed to Sharpnote. "Actually, your Stand dragged you to us. It's been guarding you ever since."

"Yeah, barely even let me get close to use the Hamon on you!"

Hamon? What was that? She was about to ask that but a familiar voice interrupted her.

"Hey!" The girl said. Kyogen had missed her from behind Jotaro's bulk. "What's all of this mumbo jumbo you're talking about?"

Jotaro sighed and pulled his hat down. "You wouldn't understand, kid."

"Oh yeah??? Try me!"

Kyogen ignored the conversation going on over at that side of the boat and focused on Joseph. "Hey, Mr. Joestar?"

"Yeah?"

"What's Hamon?"

The man straightened. "Right! Hamon is powerful energy identical to that of the sun manifested by a trained person through controlled breathing," Joseph said. "It is used primarily to heal, like what I did for you. I was not able to get all of it because your Stand likes to hover."

Kyogen glanced at Sharpnote, who stared back at her. "Sorry," she grumbled, calling it back to her.

Joseph shrugged. "I'm sure it was worried about you. We all were. You and Jotaro were down there for pretty long, and imagine our surprise when Sharpnote broke the surface with your limp body in tow!" Yellow energy crackled to life on Joseph's hand and Kyogen flinched back.

"Sorry," Kyogen said again automatically. She stilled and let Joseph touch the sore spot on her head. Warmth radiated from the old man's fingers, soothing the pain.

"There you go, kid!" Joseph said cheerfully, patting her heavily on the back. "All done!"

"Fortunately, Sharpnote got you to the surface before you could inhale any water," Kakyoin said, handing Kyogen her bag. "You are very lucky."

Kyogen stared at the horizon. She was tired, despite just gaining consciousness a few minutes ago. Maybe it was just the shock. Probably. Joseph stretched his arms from where he was sitting. "We'll have to wait it out until rescue comes. I don't know how long we'll need to wait, but it's best to conserve our energy for now. Wind, feel free to get more rest if you need it."

Kyogen nodded. "Thank you," she said. Checking her bag, she saw that both her daggers were wrapped up together in the cloth. Thankfully, no water had leaked through it into any of her stuff. Kyogen zipped up her bag and scanned the area around her. The sailors were in the other boat and all of them appeared tired. Most of the passengers on her boat looked no worse for wear, and Kyogen felt like she got the short end of the stick. Her clothes were stiff with salt, rips decorating them. She didn't want to see what her hair must've looked like.

Joseph yawned widely and said, "Well, I'm gonna try and get some shut-eye for the night! Take care!"

The others all voiced their agreement in getting some rest, and as they settled down one by one, Kyogen was left with the sounds of water lapping against the side of the boat and deep breaths from the others. She couldn't help but scan over the weathered faces of her fellow group. Despite only knowing them for so long, she felt connected with them somehow. She leaned back and stared up at the sparkling stars above her.

***

The night passed with Kyogen keeping vigil amongst the stars. The sun rose and one by one the stars went away. Avdol was the first to rise, looking at her with surprise. "Did you not sleep, Wind?"

"No, I didn't, Avdol-sama."

"Just call me Avdol," he said. "Aside from that, you should try to avoid staying up like that, it's detrimental to your health."

"Yeah," Kyogen said, letting out a humorless laugh. "I know, I just couldn't sleep."

"I understand," Avdol said. "You've been through quite a lot so far, it's understandable that you'd be so on edge from it."

Kyogen jumped as Jotaro's voice interrupted the moment."Hey," he said. "I'm curious about something. How come when the barnacles latched onto your Stand, you didn't receive any damage?" He held up Hamon-healed hands. "Most of everyone here suffers the same injuries when their Stand gets hurt, is yours different?"

"Oh, I get hurt alright," Kyogen said, wincing. The crack-like, mother-of-pearl scars radiating from the small of her back was proof of that. "I guess Sharpnote's more resistant to damage. But there's enough force, it'll get cracked and chipped. I know."

"Wind..." Avdol began tentatively. "You know that most Stands only receive damage from other Stands of something wielded by a Stand, right?"

Kyogen blanked. "Uh... you said most Stands."

"That's because your Stand is the first instance that I've seen different."

"Are you sure, Wind? You're not lying are you?" Jotaro asked.

"I'm not lying," Kyogen replied curtly. She was sure of what happened that day.

Avdol hummed and said, "Well the world of Stands is one that is as varied as the individuals on this Earth. You can never be certain of what rules they follow."

"Mr. Avdol, you seem to know a lot about Stands," Kyogen noted.

"Indeed. I have been studying them for many years now. They are interesting and all unique in their own ways."

"Hey, hey, what are you guys talking about so loudly in the morning?" Polnareff grumbled, stretching languidly from where he sat. "Can't let the rest of us sleep in peace or what?"

"The sun's been up for a bit already you lazy ass," Jotaro retorted. He sighed and reached into his pocket, but paused. "Yare yare daze, my cigarettes aren't dry yet..."

"As good a time as any to quit," Kakyoin laughed, joining into the conversation. Joseph snorted and jerked up, startling the kid next to him. It seemed like everyone was awake now as chatter began to fill the air around Kyogen as she settled back into watching and waiting.

"I'm thirsty," the kid—she really needed to ask her name—whined. "Do we have any water?"

Kyogen passed the canteen to her and the kid began chugging it down, only to spit it straight back up.

"Hey kid, watch it! That's the last of our water!" Joseph yelled at her.

The girl pointed to something behind Kyogen. "S-S-S-Sh-Sh-Ship! SHIP!"

Kyogen snapped around and nearly toppled off her seat when she saw a towering tanker looming over the two lifeboats. "H-How did none of us hear it come up?" She asked, eyeing it suspiciously as it slowly floated to the lifeboats, stopping to drop down a ramp. They let sailors in the other boats climb on first as the group tried to grasp the situation at hand.

"Where the hell did this ship come from?" Jotaro muttered. "It's like it appeared out of thin air. And nobody's shown themselves, even though the ramp is down."

Polnareff was the first to leap on the stairs, turning back and saying, "They came this far to save us! There has to be someone on board! Even if they're all Stand users, I'm getting on this boat." Kakyoin gave them a lost look, then shrugged and got on the stairs, following Polnareff. It was Avdol who got off next, then Jotaro and Joseph. Jotaro turned around and tried to offer a hand to the girl, who promptly leaped at Joseph and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Yare yare daze," Jotaro sighed. He turned to Kyogen as she was shakily making her way through the boat to the stairs and offered the same hand.

She gratefully took it, wobbling as she leaped to the stairs. "Thank you," Kyogen said. Jotaro simply nodded and turned to walk up the stairs.

The ship was eerily silent as they made it onto the deck, only the creaking of the hanging hooks and the sounds of the sailors that had just climbed aboard heard among the light mist that had begun to pass through the area. Something made her on edge, and she realized that Sharpnote was out, walking next to her. "Come back," she grumbled to it. Sharpnote simply shook its head and continued scanning the deck. It split off from her and walked to Avdol, who gave her a confused look. Kyogen simply shrugged and pointed to Joseph, who was walking to the boat cabin, indicating that she would follow him.

Kyogen joined Joseph's side. Their group got larger when Kakyoin, Polnareff, Jotaro, and finally the girl joined them on their way to the control room. "Something feels off, Mr. Joestar," she murmured to him. "My Stand is out, and it refuses to be called back."

"Something is definitely going on," Kakyoin said. "I'm not sure what, but we should be on guard.

Joseph pushed open the door to the control room, where not a soul greeted Kyogen and the group. "Wh-What's with this boat?!" He exclaimed. "There's no captain in the pilothouse, no operator in the radio room, no crew anywhere on board!"

"Yet everything seems to be working fine," Kyogen mused, eyeing the moving steering wheel. She didn't know anything about large ships, but she was confident that there should have been a captain on board, at the least.

"Maybe they're all in the bathroom with a bad case of diarrhea," Polnareff said, shrugging.

Kyogen didn't notice the other opened door until the kid pointed it out. "Everyone, come here!" She exclaimed, pointing inside the room. "There's a monkey inside a cage!"

Reaching the room first, Kyogen looked in to see a large orangutan staring back at her. Goosebumps erupted on her arms when she made eye contact with it. Locked, in a stare-off with the monkey, she didn't notice the others coming into the room.

"An orangutan," Kakyoin noted as Kyogen tore her gaze away from it.

"Who the hell cares about a monkey?!?" Joseph asked. "Let's split up and see who's feeding it."

They all silently agreed to that, and Kyogen was the last to leave the room, turning around to eye the orangutan one last time. It gave her a grin and she grimaced. She didn't stay for too long and turned back to catch up with the others, walking side by side with the kid.

They met up with Avdol and the other sailors, who were all clustered around an operating machine. Sharpnote left Avdol's side to join Kyogen. Joseph paused and Kyogen saw him glancing overhead. She looked up just in time to see one of the hooks come to life.

"Advol," she yelled. "Hook!"

Her warning came too late as the hook swung down into the back of a sailor's head, the point coming out of his mouth is a spurt of blood and a dying cry. She turned her head away when the hook cable shortened, the carcass dangling down from it. Kyogen avoided looking at the body in an attempt to keep her vomit in check. Good god, this was not what she was expecting when she stepped foot on this ship.

"Yare yare daze..." Jotaro sighed, hand covering the kid's eyes. "A welcome like this is a bit much for a kid."

Kyogen had to force herself to not look at the growing puddle of blood on the ground.

"No one was touching the crane..." she muttered, backing away from it. "Why was it moving?" A drop of sweat trailed down her temple as she tried to control her trembling limbs.

Joseph turned to the remaining sailors and said, "Hey, don't touch any of the machinery. If it moves or runs on electricity, don't lay a finger on it! If you want to live, follow my orders! Don't leave the cabin down below until we say it's okay!" He then turned to Kyogen and said to her, "Wind, you remember where it is, right? Can you lead them down there?"

Kyogen nodded. "I'll leave Sharpnote here with you. He'll lead you to me if anything happens. I have my daggers to defend myself with, so Sharpnote might be of use to you."

Kyogen beckoned the sailors and the kid to follow her. She kept an eye out for any strange happenings as they went through the halls. Nothing except an eerie stillness. They reached the radio cabin and Kyogen pushed open the door to let the sailors in. She stepped out and scanned the hallways, the kid still next to her. Choosing a random direction, Kyogen started making her way down the hall.

"Man... I'm all sticky from the salt," the girl complained. Kyogen was suddenly aware of said salt clinging to her skin and clothes. "I wanna take a shower..."

"Maybe a shower wouldn't be too bad," Kyogen agreed. "But we have to be wary of what's happening around here."

The girl jumped, not expecting Kyogen to reply. "Yeah... what's up with that, anyway? Trouble always finds your group. Are you guys jinxes or something? Even you and your eye look weird!"

"We're not jinxes, kid," Kyogen replied, ignoring the comment towards her eyes. "It's just that there are a lot of people who want to stop us, and they don't care who gets involved."

"Stop calling me kid, I have a name, you know," the kid huffed.

"Then what is it?"

"Anne," she said proudly.

Kyogen nodded and replied, "I'm Wind Kyogen--Kyogen Wind."

Anne looked at her with curious eyes. "Kyogen? Are you Japanese? Is that what your accent is?"

"Half Japanese," Kyogen corrected. "My father was Vietnamese."

"Ah, no wonder you looked kinda strange," Anne mused.

Kyogen sweatdropped. Thanks for the boost of confidence, kid. This wasn't the first time someone had made a comment on her looks though, so she was used to it.

"Hey, hey, look!" Anne yelled, pushing ahead of her. She ran to a marked door and pushed it open. "It's the shower stalls! You and I can get a shower!"

Kyogen scratched her head. "Are you sure about that?"

"I mean, come on," Anne urged. "There's really no one present right now, so this might be our only chance at getting clean!"

Her conviction was thinning as she let herself be led into the room by Anne. "Alright," she sighed. "But we have to make it quick."

***

A short tune rang through Kyogen's head as she folded her salt-encrusted clothes into neat piles. She had on a grey pair of loose sweatpants with the bottom cinched around her ankles and a white collared shirt with yet another bow tying the collar together. The fabric making up her previous bow was dirty, so she opted for a pale-blue strip of fabric to tie a new bow. Anne was still in the shower and for a moment, Kyogen entertained the thought of hand-washing her clothes. No, that wouldn't do. She didn't have the time to wait for them to dry, it would be better to wash them when they reached their destination.

Amidst the falling water and the tune in her head, she heard distant thumping, and what she swore were screams. Kyogen straightened up and grabbed both of her daggers from their cloth wrap, slipping her backpack on and sliding out of the shower rooms. Dread filled her as she saw a red liquid leaking out from underneath the door of the sailors' cabin. She slowly took steps towards it, and froze when the door creaked open. Kyogen's eyes widened when she saw the orangutan step out. She ducked behind a wall, trying to control her breathing. Slow, plodding footsteps got louder, and it passed her. Panic filled her as she realized that Anne was left vulnerable without anyone to help her.

She had to act.

Kyogen leaped at its back, digging her knife into its back. The monkey let out an ungodly shriek and stumbled. It slammed her into the wall. Kyogen cried out as she lost her hold on the daggers. Pipes burst out of the wall and wrapped around her throat, arms, and legs, pinning her to the wall and rendering her immobile. She choked as the pipe around her throat tightened as the monkey came nearer.

------------------------------------------------------CONTENT WARNING----------------------------------------

It gave her a salacious grin and eyed her chest.

Kyogen struggled harder against the unyielding pipes as its hand came closer to the buttons of her shirt. "G-Get away, fucker," she wheezed. "I'll kill you, I'll fucking kill you."

There was a tearing sound as the monkey pulled at her collar, ripping the bow and stretching the fabric as the buttons popped open. Her eyes burned with tears as she squeezed them shut. Fuck. Was this how it was going to be? Please no. Please. By all the deities up above not like this.

----------------------------------------------------WARNING OVER-----------------------------------------------

A loud crackle and large crystals blasted the orangutan away from her, announcing the new arrival of two others. Jotaro walked past Kyogen as Sharpnote hurried to her, grasping the pipes in its grips and tearing it out of the walls. Kyogen took in shuddering breaths, throat aching, as she dropped to the floor, free of the constraints. She grabbed her fallen daggers and stumbled to her feet, looking at where Jotaro went, just in time to see a fan break off and embed itself into his shoulder. She shakily made her way to his side, trying to yank her stretched collar into a position that it wouldn't show the tank top or anything underneath.

"This is no ordinary ape..." Jotaro said. "It's a Stand user."

He reached for the fan in his shoulder and Kyogen watched as one of the blades came to life and batted his hand away. She had to dive out of the way as Jotaro flew back, hit by the propeller in his shoulders. Sharpnote was there to stop him from hitting the wall while Star Platinum rushed past her to punch the ape. The dust cleared to show them that the monkey was phasing through the wall and that Jotaro's Stand's fist had missed it.

The boat shuddered and started to warp around her and Jotaro. Kyogen panicked, remember the young girl in the showers. "S-Shit I gotta get to Anne!" She yelled, dashing down the hall. She didn't need to open the door when it swung open and Anne stumbled out, fully-dressed.

"W-What's going on?" Anne cried as Kyogen grabbed her hand.

"Stick close to me!" Was all that Kyogen said. She managed to reach Jotaro with the girl, only to shove them out of the way of more pipes.

Once again, Kyogen found herself pinned to the wall, this time side by side with her Stand. More pipes exploded from the wall and then Jotaro slammed into the wall next to her. The orangutan phased back into the hallway, dressed in a captain's uniform and a smoking pipe. Anne had managed to hide away where the orangutan didn't see her. Kyogen let out a feral scream and thrashed against the pipes. Aside her, the pipes groaned as Sharpnote pulled against them.

Not again.

She gagged as the pipe tightened around her throat again, cutting off her cries. Rancid air blew into her face as the ape huffed, drool leaking out of its mouth.

A gold flash and something bounced off the ape's head. It turned around and eyed Jotaro.

"That button's not part of your Stand," the male said.

The ape shook with barely suppressed rage as it held up the button. Kyogen sagged down within her restraints as the attention turned away from her, a numb rock filling her chest.

"You mad?" Jotaro challenged. "I guess it wounded your pride, since you thought you'd already won." He paused and reconsidered his words. "No, that's wrong... because apes don't have any pride!"

The monkey leaped at Jotaro.

"You're gonna regret that."

Kyogen watched with a detached air as Star Platinum flicked the button into the monkey's head with enough force to puncture it. It fell back, screaming. With its focus wavered, the pipes went loose enough for Jotaro to break free of it. Sharpnote did too, and it turned to Kyogen and began viciously ripping the pipes away from her. It supported her as she stumbled to the ground. Kyogen glanced at Jotaro as she was making her way to Anne. He was hovering over the ape, who had its stomach displayed.

"Yare yare daze," Jotaro muttered, adjusting his hat. "I heard that when frightened, animals show their stomachs to signal they're giving up. So you're asking me to forgive you?"

Kyogen watched as it trembled and nodded.

Jotaro turned to her and asked, "So, Wind, should we forgive it?"

She paused as Anne latched onto her arm, a cold look forming on her face. "Make it hurt," she rasped, turning to lead Anne out of the hall. "We're going up." Even with her ripped shirt, even with her bruised throat, she couldn't be bothered to exact revenge back upon the ape. She felt sick and shaky as she led Anne through the halls.

Halfway to the deck, the ship began shaking harder than before. "What's going on on?" Anne cried.

Kyogen cursed and grabbed Anne's hand, beginning to bolt down the hall. "The ship's sinking!"

Sharpnote appeared beside her and scooped Anne up, ignoring her surprised yelp as she was picked up by an unknown force.

"Go!" Kyogen barked at it. "You remember the way out!"

It hesitated but bolted ahead of her after she scowled at it. Kyogen stumbled and Jotaro passed her.

"Move it!"

In a twist of fate, Kyogen found herself being swept up into Star Platinum's arms, the Stand floating after his user. She stiffened at the contact but allowed herself to be carried. It would be faster, after all.

Ahead of them, Sharpnote slammed into the metal door and burst through it to the deck above. They dove out the doorway as the hall collapsed behind them. They halted as they saw the others slowly being swallowed up by the ship. Kyogen leaped out of Star Platinum's arms and ran to them. "Kujo! We need to pull everyone out of this!" She yelled to him, haphazardly tucking her daggers into her waistband.

She reached Joseph first, grabbing both his arms and trying to pull the old man out. It was like trying to lull him out of a vat of gum. In front of her, she could see Jotaro trying to do the same with Kakyoin.

"Anne! Go to the lifeboats!" She yelled, pointing in the direction she remembered they were in.

The Stand gently put Anne down and made its way to her. Sharpnote crouched down behind Joseph. Its fingers turned jagged and lengthened, fusing into a large spearpoint of crystals. It slammed both of them down into the deck, the metal screeching and ripping open underneath the force. The deck groaned as Sharpnote widened the rip, allowing Kyogen to finally help Joseph scramble out of the pit.

Kyogen heard a familiar Stand voice and loud banging from where Jotaro was. She looked to see Star Platinum finishing up a barrage of punches as Jotaro pulled both Avdol and Kakyoin out.

"Hey! Over here too! Don't forget me!" Polnareff yelled, waving his arms.

Sharpnote reached him first and did the same thing again, slamming the jagged spears of its arms down into the metal behind Polnareff and ripping a hole in it. Kyogen reached Polnareff and helped him out of the hole. As the French got to his feet, the tanker shuddered beneath them and Kyogen nearly toppled over.

"We need to get out of here!" Joseph yelled. "Where's the kid?!"

Kyogen waved at them to follow her as she began running to the boats. "I already sent her to the lifeboats! Let's go!"

The rest of them followed her as the ship shook around them. They reached the lifeboats that Anne was waiting in and Kyogen waited for the others to scramble in.

"Hey Wind! What are you doing?" Polnareff yelled. "Stop standing around!"

Kyogen looked at Sharpnote, who was on the other end where the ropes held that side of the lifeboat. She nodded and the two of them slashed the rope, vaulting into the boat as it fell down. Around her, the group was screaming as Kyogen landed harshly into the boat, narrowly avoiding the explosion on-deck. She wheezed at her back slammed into the edge of the wooden bench. Thankfully, her bag cushioned some of the force, but it was still painful nonetheless.

She swore her soul left her body as the little boat hit the sea, landing with a large spray of water that showered the occupants in it. They managed to drift far enough to witness the large ship crumple and collapse in on itself, sinking into a small wooden boat away from them. Kyogen let herself lay there for a bit as she registered the aches in her body. A missing hair tie and some back pain. Got it.

Polnareff was in her face as she slowly sat up. "Wind, do you how stupid that was? We could have died if something happened."

Kyogen winced and subconsciously shrunk back from the loud French. Sharpnote shifted as if sensing her agitation. "We had to lower the boat somehow," she rasped. "And I thought that you guys would appreciate not having to stand there and lower it as the ship self-destructed." She straightened up and winced as something in her back twinged.

"Hey! You're hurt!" Joseph pushed Polnareff back. He reached for her neck and Kyogen flinched. Joseph froze and his eyes softened. "It's alright, kid. I'm just going to check out the bruises on your neck."

"R-Right," Kyogen stuttered, gathering her hair and holding it back. She was tense as his hand rested on the junction where her neck and shoulder met, but slowly relaxed as the warmth of the Hamon flowed through her body. Joseph withdrew and Kyogen thanked him, yanking the collar of her ripped shirt closed and hugging her backpack to her. She hunched down as if to avoid the eyes boring into her, staring at the rippling waves of the water underneath her.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened back there, Wind?" Kakyoin asked curiously.

Kyogen flinched, not tearing her eyes from the water. She glanced at Anne, who had a curious look on her face. "Maybe I'll tell you later."

For a moment, Kakyoin's face turned dark, but he gave her a gentle smile. "I understand," he said.

A tense moment of silence stretched between them.

"Looks like we'll be drifting again," Avdol sighed, eyeing the setting sun. "We'll just have to pray that we get rescued and reach Singapore safely."

(Forgot to post this earlier heheh. Sorry everyone)

[hopelessromanticspoonie]

To Keep You Safe

Title: We wear red so they don’t see us bleed

Chapter: 5/?

Author:  hopeless_romantic_spoonie

Summary:  Life as the assistant to Tony Stark was busy, but boring. All of that changed when I touched something I shouldn’t have and woke up with strange new abilities. If I thought that trying to figure out my new place in life as an Avenger was tough, I had no idea what was in store for me once I ran into the frustrating God of Mischief, Loki.

Rating: E (later on)

Notes: Friendly reminder that this is un-Beta’d, so please excuse any typos or grammatical errors I no doubt missed during revisions.

Also on Ao3 here :)

Warnings for this chapter: Blood, language, and violence

~

After our talk, to his credit, Loki did give me a wide berth. For the next several weeks of life on the Compound, I trained and practiced with Natasha and Wanda, hung out with Thor and Sam, and watched TV with Steve without a single confrontation–let alone sighting. The Trickster God had to have been using whatever abilities he normally employed to keep tabs on everyone to steer clear of me. And that was one hundred percent peachy-keen in my book.

Tony and Bruce finally finished their extensive testing on all things me. It was decided that the only powers the mystery box gave me were geokinesis and an increased healing rate. When I asked for a reason why this happened, I was given some medical mumbo jumbo that instantly turned my brain to mush. Long story short, they didn’t know what the box had been, only what it had done to me, and it wasn’t going away. This was my new normal.

The knowledge that this wasn’t going away was one hell of a motivator to get a better handle on everything. And because of that, my grasp on my powers improved. I could control more than one object at a time, and it didn’t drain me physically nearly as much as it did in the beginning. Nor did it require such an emotional toll. I could draw on them without bringing forth the full scope of emotional upheaval as before, although that did seem to help. There was still so much work to do, but I was getting there. Slowly but surely.

As for my physical abilities, those lessons were kicking my ass just as much as I had anticipated. I wasn’t super strong like Steve or Thor, so I had to be more thoughtful and strategic when fighting. Brute force wasn’t going to work when I was only five and a half feet tall and preferred cookies to carrots. Natasha worked on teaching me various martial art techniques that relied more on striking effectively than hammering away at my opponent with my fists. It made sense but that didn’t mean it wasn’t hard as hell. I limped away from our training sessions covered in bruises and nursing strained muscles more often than not. Thank goodness for accelerated healing. I needed it to keep up with the grueling sparring sessions.

~~~

Flashing red lights and F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s voice echoing throughout the entire Compound jerked me out of my exhaustion-induced sleep. “All Avengers report to the Quinjet immediately. All Avengers, gather your gear and report to the Quinjet immediately.”

I lurched out of bed and ran to my closet, throwing on a pair of dark jeans and a thick long-sleeved t-shirt. I didn’t have a custom suit like everyone else, but this seemed like it would do for whatever I would tackle. I shoved a sturdy pair of boots on my feet and I was barreling out the door.

Natasha was just leaving her room, already fully dressed and ready to kick ass. We both sprinted down the stairs and through the building, crossing the lawn into the hangar. Thor, Bruce, and Captain were all running inside the jet, followed by Natasha. Tony was poised at the edge of the ramp to get inside, looking anxious as he waved people in. When I tried to rush passed him he put his arm across my chest, barring my entrance.

“No can do, Poison Ivy. You’re not ready,” he stated, leaving no room for argument.

Not that I wouldn’t try.

“But what if I-?

“Nope. You stay here with Rock of Ages. F.R.I.D.A.Y. will keep you updated. You’d be a liability. We can’t risk it.” The visor over his face retracted into the suit, allowing him to level me with a hard stare. He didn’t even glance at Vision flying into the jet while holding Wanda securely in his arms.

“Get back. You’ll get burned,” he said more softly, a paternal concern twisting his lips into a frown. He pushed me away from the ramp and jogged inside, closing it behind him.

I had no choice but to back away out of the hangar, watching uselessly as the Quinjet started up and flew through an invisible opening in the force field surrounding the Compound. Once it was gone I pulled out my phone, checking the time. At only four in the morning, it was going to be a long day if all I did was sit around and wait for them to come back.

After heading back into my room and changing from jeans and boots into athletic shorts and tennis shoes, I headed to the gym. If I wasn’t ready for this mission I was going to be ready for the next one. Even if I had to spend hours taking out my frustration and anxiety on a punching dummy until my knuckles bled.

During a break around noon, I chugged water and wiped the sweat from my brow. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., any news?” I panted.

“Sorry, Jen. All I can say is that they made it to their destination and everyone is still alive,” she responded, somehow managing to sound remorseful even as a computer program.

I snarled in frustration and threw down the now empty water bottle, punishing the practice dummy in front of me an elbow to the face. Several hours of doing my best to beat the living daylights out of the dummy and it was no worse for the wear, while the soreness and exhaustion in my limbs weighed them down considerably. But it was this or stare at the TV or wall in the living room distractedly as my mind raced with all the things that could go wrong for them on this sudden mission, and this at least wore me out enough so that I might be able to sleep later.

“Perimeter breach. Perimeter breach. One helicopter on the main lawn,” F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s voice rang out through the compound and my phone in my pocket as red lights flashed throughout the Compound.

Just as I did that morning, I dropped what I was doing and sprang into action--despite my protesting muscles.

“Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit,” I cursed, stopping short just outside the building. A sleek black helicopter was hovering over the middle of the Compound with four men dressed in black protective gear descending from the sides on ropes. As I watched in shock, two more helicopters came into view and began depositing their payloads of terrifying men as well.

As soon as their feet hit the ground, they raised impressive-looking guns into their sightlines and ran toward the main building. Right at me.

Ah hell.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., I could use some backup,” I grunted, crouching down behind a bush and looking around to see what I had nearby I could use as weapons. Some trees, basketball sized rocks and a giant decorative boulder were all I could see. Awesome.

“The team is still off-base, Jen,” she replied, her voice muffled from my phone in my back pocket. Super awesome.

It was a long shot, but I had to ask her anyway. “What about Loki?”

“He is handling the intruders on the West side of the Compound, Jen. Several groups have come in on foot.”

Loki was helping? What in the world was that about? Maybe it was just a chance to do something, wreak some havoc, as he had to be bored as hell cooped up here without an outlet. If his boredom and need for mayhem was keeping more men off of my back, I’d take it.

But, that still left the group in front of me for me to handle on my own. I’d never fought anyone, not really. Sparring with Nat and training with Wanda did not live up to this experience at all in terms of preparedness. I was the end of the line, though, so I had to try my best. Gritting my teeth, I focused on the ground, lifting my arms and pulling up as much dirt and debris from the grass as I could. The men slowed their advance at the peculiar sight, but only just enough to look at one another briefly before continuing. With a shout I sent the debris flying at them, hoping to blind them temporarily while I figured out what the heck I was supposed to do next. My weak plan wasn’t the most effective. I was disheartened as they crept on even as they blinked dirt from their eyes.

Plan B. I curled my fingers inward and ripped several thin branches from the tree nearest to myself. Aiming the sharp, broken ends at the men, I flicked my fingers outward and sent them flying with as much oomph as I could muster. Only one went through the neck of a man and sent him bleeding and thrashing to the ground. The rest hit their helmets or thick kevlar vests like they were nothing.

“I’m so screwed,” I muttered. My aim still wasn’t the best with multiple projectiles, and that was without having spent the morning taking out my frustrations in the gym. The adrenaline rushing through me could only do so much to compensate, and that wasn’t going to last forever.

The closest to me grabbed something off of his belt and threw it at the building behind me. I whipped my head around, tracking the beeping with my eyes to get a better look at what had been thrown. Having never seen one in real life, my brain stuttered over what it was for half a second. They had grenades?!

My feet carried me away from the building before I had made the conscious decision to move, propelling me as fast as possible from the explosive. It just wasn’t quite fast enough. The shockwave battered against me, followed by tiny pricks of pain all over the back of my body as white-hot glass embedded itself in my unprotected skin. The cry that tore through my lips was almost silent to my ringing ears, but it was enough to draw the attention of the men, who rained bullets down on me.

No time to think or run, I brought a large, decorative stone in front of me like a shield. I saw dust particles and chunks of rock fall to the ground and I struggled to keep it between me and the men. My teeth ground together and all the muscles in my body strained as I directed all of the energy that constantly coursed through me at holding up the massive weight while also slowly backing away from them. I just needed to get inside the building. I could take them out one at a time if I could get more cover. Maybe.

As soon as I was close enough to the now blown-out glass wall, I shoved my hands and, consequently, the boulder at two of the men and dashed inside, slamming my back into a concrete wall for cover and ignoring the wave of pain it brought to the new wounds I had just gotten. Thank goodness for modern minimalist architecture and adrenaline.

I took a few deep breaths and got to my knees, turning around to poke my head out to see who was left. Two pairs of legs were still beneath the human-sized boulder I had thrown, so that just left nine baddies for me to deal with. Going for broke and hoping that this was something I could do, I reached out towards a tree near the back of the group. I could feel the glowing life-force of it, from the tips of the branches to the roots.

“Here goes nothing,” I growled, directing my energy to the roots, willing them to grow. I reached out and pulled hard, and for my efforts, I saw the thick dark roots burst from the ground and race toward one of the men. They tangled around his ankles as I twisted my fingers in a circle, pulling him down and wrapping around his body. He panicked and fired his weapon wildly, trying to shoot the roots off of him, but only succeeded in hitting the stomach of one of his buddies. I urged the roots to wrap around his chest and neck, and the shooting stopped abruptly.

In the distraction of flexing my newfound powers, I failed to notice the man coming up around the wall until just before he shot. I ducked my head and the bullet lodged itself into the concrete inches from my ear, sending grit flying into my eyes. I wildly turned, flailing desperately and pulling another stone from outside to slam into the back of his unprotected neck.

As the man fell, I saw the muzzle of his gun flash before white-hot agony exploded in my shoulder.

In the movies, when someone gets stabbed or shot, usually they'll fly back dramatically and scream. They have a few seconds to mutter some last words and then it's over. Turns out getting shot isn't like the movies. I didn't fly back several feet, soaring through the air to sprawl ungainly onto the floor. I sank to sit on my heels, blinking harshly as my brain attempted to process the worst pain I'd ever experienced as it radiated from my shoulder. My hand shot up to cover the wound, trying to stem the flow of blood as it pulsed out of my body in time with my staccato heartbeat. It took several tries to take a deep breath, the action seemingly doing more harm than good as the movement tugged on my shoulder.

Gotta focus. I had to get my head in the game. The remaining seven bad guys were still coming, and fast. It didn’t matter that I was injured to them. They weren’t going to stop to give me a time out to get patched up, so I just had to keep going. My best bet on stopping them relied on my being able to see them which unfortunately meant sticking my head out of cover. I clenched my teeth as I got to my feet and let out a guttural battle cry as I turned around to face them.

I was most definitely going to die today, but when my friends returned and watched the footage, I didn’t want them to see me cowering in fear until one of them put a bullet in my brain. That wasn’t what being an Avenger was about. It was about fighting until the last breath, and taking down as many of these bastards as I could along the way. Sorry, guys. Sorry, Tony.

Heads turned in my direction, guns following suit. With one hand busy gripping my bullet wound, the other curled into a fist as I focused on bringing every single stone on the Compound lawn levitating in the air.

“Get down!” Loki shouted, running from the opposite side of the building toward me, looking the battle-hardened warrior in his leather armor. An invisible force knocked me to the ground with such force that the back of my head bounced against the tile floor.

And then everything became a blur.

Loki screaming in rage.

Deafening tearing and ripping sounds.

Bullets flying and smashing into the wall.

Warm blood matting my hair and pooling in the hollows of my neck.

Blood-curdling screams cutting off suddenly.

A pale, unfocused face.

Excruciating pain as I was jostled into strong arms.

Is this what dying feels like?

The scent of iron and sweat and leather and spice.

“I am not allowing you to die, damn it!”

And then darkness swallowed me whole.

~~~

A flurry of voices pulled me from the blissful, painless darkness.

“It’s been three days.”

“I know that. Her vitals are stable. You gotta give her time.”

“That’s not good enough!”

“What else can we do?”

I took stock of my body with my eyes closed. My limbs were heavy on the soft surface that I rested on, probably a bed. Besides the voices, a steady beeping that matched the painful drumbeat in my head. Probably a heart monitor, which meant that I was in some sort of a hospital. Itching fire burned on my shoulder, and I blamed that for the real reason why I had woken up. It was impossible to ignore, just like the loud voices echoing around the room.

“You can stop shouting in my room, for starters,” I croaked, my voice dry and scratchy from disuse. God, I sounded weak.

I peeled my eyes open only to immediately close them against the bright lights above me. Trying again, I opened them just enough to squint at my surroundings. I’d landed myself in the infirmary of the Compound once again. Not a hospital, but I had been close enough. A frazzled Tony, Natasha, and Thor appeared to be the culprits for the shouting match I’d just heard.

“If you’re going to shout, at least give me some more pain meds so I can sleep through it,” I grumbled, hoping that the bad attempt at humor would ease some of the anxiety from their faces as I tried to sit up in the bed, only to fall back down with a gasp as soon as I put weight on my shoulder. The shock of pain was enough to tell me that that was a very bad idea right now.

All three rushed over to me at once. Thor took my right hand carefully, mindful of the IV connected to the back of it, and Natasha took the left. Tony moved behind my bed only to reappear with a syringe full of unknown liquid that he injected into the IV line. Within moments a weight smothered the pain and pulled a sigh of relief from deep within me. Ahh, pain meds.

“Milady, I am so glad to see you awake,” Thor said softly, his thumb lightly stroking the backs of my fingers as he smiled down at me.

“We gotta work on your observation skills,” Nat teased, gesturing to my shoulder and giving me a thin smile.

“Pebbles, I thought I told you not to scare me like this,” Tony chided me, standing at my feet. His hands rested on my blanket-covered ankles, clutching them like I was going to run out of the room and get shot up again. That wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. Once was enough for me.

“What happened?” I directed my quiet question at Tony, knowing he would have the most forthright answer of the bunch.

“We have been searching for these six rocks, called Infinity Stones. That’s what Vision has in his head, the Mind Stone. This guy called Thanos is trying to get all of them together. Reindeer Games says that he wants to rule the world with it, wipe out half of everything in existence. So, we’ve been trying to track them down,” he said, brow furrowed. “We’ve already destroyed one, well, Wanda did. The Mind Stone. Thor stole it from some nut job on another planet months ago. The Space Stone was in the Tesseract, which Loki had. When he and Thor escaped Ragnarok, Loki brought it back as a peace offering. So that’s one’s gone, too. F.R.I.D.A.Y. is programmed to look for certain… anomalies that might be one of the remaining stones being used. She’s found one in New York City, but the wizard that is currently using it won’t give it up. That’s a work in progress. Something sketchy was happening in New York City, and that was the alert that she gave us. It was Thanos, with the Soul Stone, trying to get the other stone from the wizard. We managed to get it from him. Took a few licks, Steve broke an arm and Wanda a leg, but it’s destroyed now. We’re still looking for the Power Stone and the Reality Stone,” he rambled, exhaustion lining his face as he recalled the events he had rattled off.

“That’s, um, a lot to take in,” I replied, my thoughts muddled by the glorious meds I had been given. That was a lot to unpack, and I wasn’t in any state to even try to do that. It could wait for another day.

“Yeah, so, anyway, we were off fighting Grimace when those assholes from Hydra attacked here. We didn’t even know about it until we got back onto the jet and F.R.I.D.A.Y. let us know. We booked it as fast as we could, but it had been almost a whole day since…” he trailed off, swallowing thickly and gripping my ankles just a little tighter as he shifted his gaze to my blanket-covered knees.

Natasha chimed in, “Tony was able to stream a live feed from F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s cameras. We saw everything.”

“You fought valiantly against the attackers. Loki took up the battle after you had fallen, finishing it in your stead,” Thor added, his voice clear and proud. Whether it was for me or his brother, that was to be determined. I was too exhausted to worry too much.

Tony nodded to Thor and Natasha in silent thanks. “Standing up like some action hero was a dumbass move, by the way,” he paused, staring me down until I felt thoroughly chewed out.

Only after I looked appropriately shamed for my actions did he continue, “Him knocking you on your ass gave you that nasty goose egg on the back of your head. He took out the rest of the Hydra men before getting you up here. I’m not sure what voodoo he did, but he got the bullet out of your shoulder and slowed the bleeding until the doctors I called could get here,” he finished, taking a deep breath.

“By the time we arrived, you were sound asleep and all patched up. Loki hadn’t left your side the whole time,” Nat added, her brow raised.

A yawn escaped from my mouth without warning and I nodded through it, pulling my hand away from her to at least cover my gaping maw. “Loki saved me?” I asked on the tail-end of the huge yawn.

“If it weren’t for Loki, you would be through the gates of Valhalla by now, Milady,” Thor whispered, his eyes grave as they met mine.

Tony let go of me and walked to my side, nudging Nat out of the way so he could rest the back of his hand on my forehead. “You feeling okay?” he asked, changing the subject abruptly.

The change of subject was not unwelcome. The pain meds seemed to spread like molasses throughout my brain, muddling my already scattered and confused thoughts. There were magical stones that some dude named Thanos wanted to use to destroy half of everything? And the Avengers had been going after them all of this time without my knowledge? How long had these missions been going on where I thought one thing was happening and it was something entirely different? And there was no way in Hell would Loki ever save my life. I was a thorn in his side that made his time stuck in this compound a thousand times worse. No one would’ve blamed him if he’d ‘forgotten’ in the heat of battle to push me into cover, letting Hydra riddle me with bullets.

“Uh, yeah, totally. I could go dancing I feel so great,” I muttered sarcastically, pulling myself out of my thoughts and into the room filled with my friends who watched me with concern.

“It’s on, Jen,” Nat said, winking at me from the edge of my bed.

“Let’s give her some space to rest up, guys,” Tony said, flipping his hand around on my forehead and rubbing it lightly with his thumb before stepping away.

Natasha and Thor both nodded to me with a smile before they left the room, the door whirring shut behind them. Tony gave me a final once-over and then left, calling out before the door closed, “The team left some flowers for you on the bedside table. Don’t kill anyone with them!”

After smiling at the expensive-looking glass vase of roses, I snuggled further into the soft sheets and fell into a deep, drug-induced sleep.

~~~

A cool hand on the side of my head woke me suddenly. My eyes tore open and my left hand shot out, grabbing the attacker before they could do me any harm.

“Loki,” I whispered, startled to see the Asgardian Prince at my bedside. What was he doing here?

“If you’d release my hand, I can resume checking your head wound,” he said flatly.

It was hard to grasp, the annoyed god at my bedside in casual black slacks and a white button-down shirt, waiting for me to let him go when he could easily remove himself from my grip. “Oh.” I sheepishly let go of him, my hand falling to rest at my side.

He maintained eye contact with me for a moment, his brow furrowed as he searched my eyes before looking back at the back of my head. His long fingers moved to my jaw, tugging it away from him so he could get a better look at the injury. I felt them move to probe it gently, pausing whenever I let out a hiss of pain.

“I need to change the bandage again.” His voice was firm but gentle. His tone alone threw me for a loop. It was so odd to hear him speaking cordially to me when I was used to him hissing like a snake or shouting up a storm.

As I busied himself behind me, I searched for the remote that typically accompanies a hospital bed. Finally finding it tucked beneath my leg, I used it to slowly move the automatic bed so I was sitting up. By the time I was finished Loki had come to the other side of the bed with a syringe filled with clear liquid. His piercing green eyes met mine once again as he hesitated only briefly before injecting it into my IV. Had he been waiting for me to stop him? The familiar weight of pain medication flooded my body, revealing what he had done moments before without my prompting.

He put down the syringe onto the table beside my flowers. Only now, instead of the single vase waiting for me, there was another. A single sunflower sat in a tall elegant black and gold vase. I looked back to Loki with a furrowed brow, watching him place bandages, gauze, and alcohol next to the new gift.

Finally, unable to hold back my confusion any longer, I blurted out, “Why are you helping me, Loki?”

“Because you are injured. I’ve taken over this aspect of your care since you arrived.” He said it so matter of factly it was almost an insult. As if there was no question that he wouldn’t be doing such a selfless act and he was offended that I would think he’d act differently.

“One of the others could handle this. Why are you helping me,” I pressed.

He sighed heavily and refused to reply, instead reaching out and placing his fingertips on either side of my face to tilt my head forwards off of the pillow. He moved out of my line of sight for a brief moment and I heard water running before he returned to lean over me, his chest inches from my face. This close, I was able to smell the strong spicy and masculine scent that I was quickly beginning to recognize as distinctly him. A warm, damp compress was pressed to the back of my head.

“Some blood soaked through the bandage into your hair. I need to cleanse it before I can remove the bandage.” He smoothed the damp cloth over my head again and again, the pain meds he had given me doing their job to take away the pain and leave only pressure in its wake.

The bloody rag was tossed unceremoniously into a hamper across the room, and then he grabbed the alcohol and gauze next. Some part of my mind screamed that I shouldn’t be letting him do this, that he was going to turn around any second and wrap those long fingers around my throat to finish me off, but a more rational part of me shut that down. If he was going to kill me, there would be no sense in saving my life in the first place.

And there wasn’t any hatred or malice in his gaze as I strained my eyes to look up to him without moving my head. To be completely honest, I couldn’t glean any emotion from his impassive face as he worked over me. Whatever he had to be feeling was currently locked away behind stony eyes and a firmly-set mouth.

“I’ve been watching you, Jennifer. As you train with the Witch and the Widow. Both will throw you to the ground repeatedly, besting you, and you stand right up and try again. You never give up. You clean up after the others when they forget without expecting gratitude or repayment. You set out the protein powder for the Widow and Captain each night. You explain the flavors of the food you’re eating to Vision. When they left you behind three days ago, instead of pouting like a child, you took to bettering yourself.” As he spoke he tended to the large gash on the back of my head, his soothing cool touch at odds with the confusion that littered his own words. As if I were some puzzle that he couldn’t piece together with just my odd actions as a guide.

How long had he been watching me to notice these things? And when had he noticed them? I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him in weeks. He may as well have disappeared off the planet for all that I had encountered him. And had he taken the time to notice these behaviors, or had they simply been a byproduct of his observant nature? Was I a puzzle to him that he must observe to find out, or did he watch everybody that carefully? And how the hell had I not noticed him noticing this?

“And, I need to make amends,” he added, voice so low that I almost didn’t hear it through my scattered thoughts.

His deft fingers left my skin and he placed the remnants of the medical supplies on the table. I took it as a sign that I could move my head and search his face more comfortably, trying to figure out where all of this was coming from. This was not the Loki that I knew. The Loki that I knew would be mocking me for my injuries, possibly prodding my wound to watch me squirm, if he was even here at all. Was this him trying to make things right, to 'make amends' as he had called it? Surely I, the puny mortal, wasn't worth the effort. His actions said otherwise.

He clenched his jaw, meeting my curious gaze with his own. “You knew that you were no match for those men, but you fought them anyway. Why?” Another piece of the puzzle that he couldn’t find a place for.

I swallowed thickly, flashes of the encounters playing through my mind. I killed those men. My heart sped up and tears burned in my eyes despite my clenching them shut. My lungs were unable to hold onto the air from my quick, shallow breaths as their deaths flashed through my mind. Sending an improvised spear through a man’s neck. Crushing a man to death with tree roots. Doing the same to two more with the decorative boulder. Hitting the one who shot me with a rock at the base of his skull. I hadn’t seen him die, but it had hit too hard for him to survive that.

I killed them. I killed them. I’m a murderer.

“Breathe, little one. Breathe, " Loki soothed, his voice velvet as it washed over me.

The bed pitched as he perched himself on it by my hip, and I heard his fingers snapping to get my attention. But it wasn’t loud enough, wasn’t enough to get me to open my eyes and stop the flood of images that refused to leave my mind’s eye.

“If you hadn’t have done what you were forced to do, you would be dead,” he assured me, his voice steady and sure as he tried to pull me out of my ever-increasing panic attack.

I would’ve died either way, so was killing them something I should’ve done? I lowered my chin to my chest, feeling lightheaded as I struggled to take in enough air. My whole body trembled and I pulled my knees to my chest beneath the blankets, wrapping my good arm around them to hold them to me. The onslaught of death paraded through my mind unbidden and unrelenting.

“Look at me,” he commanded. His cool hand cupped my chin, lifting my face so that he could see me more clearly. His thumb brushed against my cheek, wiping away the tears that I hadn't even realized had escaped. But it was as if I lost the ability to open my eyes, his attempts be damned. I couldn’t do it even though I so desperately wanted to.

His other hand reached out and settled onto my knee, and it was so startling that I ripped open my eyes and looked at him. Concern softened his features, at odds the harshness of his tone. “They forced your hand. You are not a murderer."

I couldn’t think of anything to say to that, so I chose silence as I focused on him. He was breathing more forcefully than normal, in through his nose and out through his mouth, and I copied him. We stayed that way for several moments, him showing me how to breathe through my panic and me following his lead. Slowly, the lightheadedness lessened enough so that I could focus. The terrible visions in my head were replaced with the piercing green eyes that held me captive.

Satisfied that I was calming down, he asked again, “Now, answer me this: Why did you fight those men when you knew you were going to lose?”

I looked away to his hand on my knee, the long fingers completely covering it even beneath the thickness of several blankets. It was easier to gather my thoughts without having to watch his reaction to them.

What had I been thinking?

“I… I knew I was the last line of defense. F.R.I.D.A.Y. said I was on my own. Was I supposed to just let them do whatever shitty thing they came to do? Guys busting through Tony’s forcefield in battle gear and assault rifles aren’t showing up to ask for a cup of sugar. If I hadn’t have done anything, they would have found me and killed me anyway. I was dead either way, but maybe I could stop enough of them that you could take the rest out if you came to help.” I ran my hand over my face, dislodging his grip from my chin in the process. “I-I didn’t mean to kill them, but I did mean to stop them. And then after that asshole shot me, I was one hundred percent dead anyway. I was bleeding out. So I might as well take as many out as I could before I go,” I shrugged, wincing at the discomfort the movement brought to my shoulder, even with the haze of medication.

“That reeks of the same self-sacrificing hero act that my brother and his troupe of morons put on. That was foolish and unnecessary,” he scolded.

I offered him nothing more than another shrug, but only of my uninjured shoulder, for his reprimand. It probably was, in his mind, but that didn't mean that I agreed.

“Did you not think I would come to your aid?” Loki asked, the smallest expression of hurt registering on his face as he brought attention to its cause.

“The last time we talked you held a knife to my throat, and then I did the same to you. Kinda. It was a tree branch, but it still counts. Why would you help me? If they had finished the job then you’d have a much easier life here. You wouldn’t have to avoid me and constantly worry about Thor breaking your face whenever I throw a fit. You could skulk around at night or on the roof without running into me. I’m just in your way.”

A muscle in Loki’s jaw ticked at my words, but he didn’t say anything he as considered them. The silence was almost more painful than the hole in my shoulder. I idly reached up to scratch at the bandage and his hand reached up and slapped it away.

He frowned at me. “I need to redress that as well. Leave it be.”

The silence stretched on as he organized the supplies he’d need in front of him and then tugged the hem of my large hospital gown down my arm to expose my shoulder and better access the bullet wound. His spindly fingers were quick and efficient in their work of removing the bandage, cleansing the wound, and then replacing the dressings with clean ones. His steady touch coming and going from my bare skin sent my heart skittering in my chest. I didn’t allow myself to wonder why it was invoking that reaction in me, but I did allow for the luxury of watching him unnoticed.

I'd never taken the time to actually see the man tending to my wounds. Taking the time to really inspect him, I was surprised to find that he was very easy to look at. His skin was unblemished and smooth, no hint of age showing on it except for the wrinkles that appeared as he furrowed his brow or squinted his eyes to get a better look at his task. His jawline was sharp enough to cut glass, and I trailed my eyes downward to the small amount of pale chest that his unbuttoned collar revealed, not a single hair to be seen. His shirt didn't hide the lean muscles that rippled beneath his skin as he worked, and some strange part of me wondered what they would feel like if I reached out and closed the distance between us. For lack of a better, more eloquent word, he was beautiful. As if sculpted by the very gods that he proclaimed himself to be. His beauty was more delicate compared to the rugged masculinity of the men of the Avengers that I was used to associating with, but that didn't make it any less lovely to behold. Just different.

I pulled my wandering eyes back up to his, a blush betraying me and heating up my skin when I found that he had been watching me look at him. The intensity of his gaze knocked me back to my senses, and I quickly looked down at my hands as they twisted around themselves. He didn't say anything, however, keeping up the silence until he was finished and throwing away the soiled bandages in the trash across the room. With his overwhelming presence gone and his large hands off my skin, I felt the tension I had unknowingly been holding in my clenched muscles ease away and my mind clear a little more. Loki paused in front of the door with his back to me, one hand resting on the windowsill beside the door.

“One thing I’ve only recently learned from my brother is to never leave a warrior behind. Especially not one of such caliber.” He took a deep breath, his shoulders heaving with the movement. “And I’m not willing to lose anyone else.”

And then he was gone, leaving behind my favorite blood-stained rock on the windowsill.

[the-green-haired-fellow]

Heaven is a Place on Earth  Joker X Reader

“I can see my baby swingin’

His parliaments on fire and his hands are up 

On the balcony and I’m singing  

Ooh baby ooh baby 

I’m in love”

“Come on baby it’s getting to hot in here” I heard him say glancing around the loud and glittering club, seeming to distrust everyone in the room. Some sort of silent exchange was made between Frost and himself due to the eye contact he made momentarily with Frost who only nodded back.. I slowly turned my head to him releasing myself from romantic thoughts of him and I that danced in my head. I smiled looking into his scared and tattooed face. His blue eyes met my green ones for a weird second before he came to a stand. He looked sharp as always. Black dress pants a crisp white button up. I swooned inside watching him walk so perfectly through the crowd taking my hand when I started to fall behind; being to busy caught up in how the muscles in his shoulders flexed as he moved. I held his icy cold hand firmly in mine; his grip was relaxed yet seemed to be ready to pull the trigger on any funny man that tried something. I giggled saying  ‘funny man’ out loud to myself. What an odd way to describe someone. The bouncers pushed the doors open and we entered Gotham’s cool night air that sent shivers up my exposed legs. “Where are we going honey?” I said playfully. He smiled then kissed my hand. “Oh just for a little drive” he said walking to the drivers side of the Lambo. I nodded becoming weary of the situation. It was always a toss up with J I never knew if he was ditching a scene to avoid a ‘vacation’ at Arkham, possibly a beat down from batsy or he was finally going to cut my neck and leave me to dry like he always threatened when he was angry. I swallowed hard noticing the two armed thugs standing behind me. I looked to J who was still standing by the drivers side in a trace, eyes locked on the ground. “Baby what’s going on?” I said weakly. Maybe this was it. He looked at me something sad coming to his face. “Nothing doll” he said “Get in the car so I can get you home. I’m not losing my doll again” I nodded compliantly getting in the luxury car his word echoing through my head. Lose me again? 

Two or three months ago I had been taken by Black Mask being used as a hostage until J, like the good man he is agreed to kill the mayor of Gotham. Since Black mask lacked the means to do it himself he needed J to do it, being he was gifted in anything having to do with murder though not gifted in being bossed around. If J completed the task Mask would return me safely home. Ultimately the plan failed miserably. I was locked in a damp basement for I think about a week until one day the steel door on the joint was blasted off of it’s hinges. Frost stepped in with a machine gun taking out the two creeps that guarded me then ushered for the other men to come down, J came down last making him vulnerable for one of Mask’s men to stick a gun to his head, which they did. All and all guns went a-blazing and Black Mask escaped the shoot out. Maybe he really did miss me? I bopped myself on the head dismissing the silly thoughts, my presence was an option for him not a necessity.   

J took no time starting up the car and jamming it down the street. The sheer power of the vehicle slammed me back in my seat ripping my focus from my thoughts. “J what the hell” I said smacking his shoulder. There was an odd silence between us until our eyes met putting a smile on both of our faces. This turned into giggles and in a few minutes we were two laughing maniac’s zooming down 12th street. “Oh baby” he said caressing my face with a smile. The lights from the buildings we drove past threw a sort of beautiful Aura around him. I smiled back leaning forward connecting my lips with his. 

The moment we made contact it was as if everything exploded. All my fears and insecurities gone with the touch of his icy hand and sound of his purr. We continued on kissing (and driving) until there was a violent crunching sound and I found myself being hurtled through the air. My eyes only connecting with the night sky, squinted a little trying to avoid their horrible glare. This was an unfamiliar situation usually I loved to gaze up and see the twinkling lights of other worlds but my eyes couldn’t take it. The initial impact of the ground didn’t hurt being so my brain was still trying to comprehend why the stars were acting the way they were. Then the sliding began and suddenly none of that astronomical mumbo-jumbo mattered. My skin felt like it was being lit up fire then dosed in chemicals over and over again. All 115 pounds of me slid a crossed the black top only being stopped when my head smacked off a brick building knocking me temporarily unconscious. When I came to I could hear gunshots around me but no person came into view, until I saw a black caped figure stalking towards me, his eyes seeming to glow a blue color. My heart quickened as my arms attempted to drag me away from him until the pain hit. I screamed in agony looking down at my body. Parts of my arms and legs were completely skinned and bloodied seeming to create a pool of my own life source below me. He scooped me up looking quickly round him before firing what I now know to be his bat-claw “J!” I screamed looking down below as the Dark Knight whisked me through the air. I spotted J for a short second he was slumped up against his car completely still. “Baby!” I screamed fighting Batman’s grasp. I kicked my legs and writhed around until I broke his hold falling freely down until I found myself rocked by a black nothingness. 

For a quick second I thought I was dead; my eyes opening to be stared down by a fuzzy light above me. Was this heaven? To my dismay it wasn’t A pretty brown haired nurse came and stuck a needle in my arm. “Ow lady watch it” I said weakly. She simply smiled at me and continued about her business. Sorely I looked around the room it was that of any basic hospital. A beeping machine stiff white blankets, the smell of cleanser. The only difference was I seemed to be in a sort of solitary confinement room. It was completely cement and had a heavy metal door locked tight instead of the flimsy blue curtain they usually had. I peered through the little window that that was on the door spotting the bat’s black cowl. Anger vibrated me and I felt my legs coming to a stand forcing me to run to the door. “I’m going to kill you Bat-freak let me out of here!” My bloodied fist pounded on the glass until I felt it crack underneath my fist. I smiled a sense of encouragement enabling me to hit harder until I was able to crash my fist through the window my hand grabbing the first throat I could. It was the nurse that had poked me before, the bat was completely gone. Most likely due to the fact he wasn’t there to begin with, only being a figment of my imagination. 

A week ago I had a nail technician due my nails longer and sharper for no reason really besides I saw the ones Cat women had and thought eh why not try something new? J when he saw them held my hand in his a mischievous grin coming to his face. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me in tight. “Whaddya say we go in the back and break those puppies in? hmm?” I laughed kissing him on the lips as he lifted me up laughing as he made his way to our bedroom. I grew sad at the memory digging my nails deeper and deeper into the nurse’s neck hoping that maybe the harder I squeezed he would come strolling down the hallways machine gun in hand, Frost to the side of him taking out any loser that came at them. Her warm blood trickled in between my fingers making it harder to keep my grip turning her whimpers into deafening screams. 

A team of cops suddenly lined up in front of the door. Their guns drawn. “Open the doors boys and the lady gets to keep her neck” I peered into the cops faces recognizing one to be Jim Gordon. He was talking harshly into a walkie talkie. “So what are we supposed to do let this crazy bitch walk free. She’s practically got a staff members throat completely ripped out.” Whoever was talking on the other end seemed to easy Jim’s conflict which worried me. Was my Price okay? Was this one of their tricks where they say if I cooperate I could see J but when  they let me out he’s laying dead of a stretcher. My nostrils flared, anger boiling in my stomach. “Okay boys you have one more chance let me out of the nurse is going to have a serious throat ache.” I watched the police their shoes shining excellent off of the polished speckled floor. Gordon nodded giving the ‘go ahead’ nod to an officer who opened the door. I stepped out smiling at Gotham’s finest dragging the nurse with me. “Now could any of you tell me where my Prince is?” I made steady eye contact with every officer. They kept their justice loving mouths shut. “Fine then” I said squeezing the nurses throat harder. She fell to her knees with a scream. All the police officers lunged forward looking to Gordon for directions. I locked my eyes on his. “God dammit. Y/n stop. He’s in route to a different hospital.” I smiled at him “See was it really that har-” everyone's attention was pulled away when the hospital doors flew open revealing a patient with pale skin and green hair.. 

My heart dropped “How in the- Why is he here” Gordon shouted talking excitedly into his walkie talkie.Everything in my brain broke loose not being able to fathom the emotions the coursed through my body. My grip tightened on the nurses throat until I was able to completely tear a section of her jugular clean out. Blood splattered a crossed everyone's faces. None of that mattered though my legs broke out into a full sprint. “J!” i screamed. He looked back. “Y/n!” he sat up quickly and took out the doctors surrounding him. I was just feet away from him. No not feet inches both of us reached out our hands about to touch when I was pulled back. My eyes looked down to see two nightmarish rubber black arms then up to J. “No!” he yelled trying to fight the swarm of cops that was subduing him his eyes looking into mine with panic? or fear swarming in them. I called out his name over and over again until a pinch on my arm brought me back to the nothingness I had just broken out of. 

Thanks for reading! More to come Same Bat-time Same Bat-channel :) To honest I’m not sure why I put the song lyrics in the beginning but I just felt like it. The Song it “West coast” by Lana Del Ray. All credit for the song lyrics goes to her.