Doctor-Patient Confidentiality
AN: First Avengers story‼ WOOT, WOOT‼ Comments are appreciated! I debated writing this in first person, at first, but I ended up going with third person. Didn't really seem right in first person, I guess…
To my knowledge Point Taken doesn't actually exist. I just made it up xD (just like I made up the other places they're running to). This story takes place after Loki has been returned to Asgard and Iron Man has nuked the Chitauri ship.
Prologue: Bitten
Cars screeching to a halt, unknowingly forming a perilous maze of metal as people park – or crash – and run for cover. Somewhere in the sea of abandoned cars are the police units that preceded the chaos. Gunshots rang overhead, announcing and combatting the unnatural hum of alien carriers. Hellish creatures, seemingly faceless and no better looking than a deceased senior citizen fished from the river, unleash an odd war cry as they circled back towards the resistance while damaging surrounding buildings. One of those buildings was a moderately-sized dance studio called Point Taken.
A dozen girls and two instructors were deathly silent inside the building that had been rendered lightless only moments ago. Something had hit the building hard enough to shake it, to cause a power outage. It was the third hit the building had endured. The first came from an unpiloted alien ship (as in, the alien once in control of it was now dead, an arrow sticking out of its back) thing bouncing off the main window. Fourteen people eyed the fearful outside through a cobweb of cracking glass.
The second blow came from the enormous metallic caterpillar-like creature burrowing through much taller buildings like they were delicious tree leaves. Iron Man jetted by the window, looking brave and inspiring in his gold and red, and the creature followed. Its large tail flicked the smooth, flat roof of the building. Within seconds – what felt like an eternity to the people too afraid to move – the razor-sharp tip gouged through the concrete and exited. A wide ten inch gash provided a safer view of New York falling to pieces.
Aliens screeched overhead, speeding away to converge on what the dance studio attendees assumed to be survivors. Fighters. Through the large incision they could hear a distant roar, much louder than the collective voices of the aliens. Car alarms blared, the ground shook, and the gray-blue sky lit up for a millisecond. Was that thunder?
Noise began to fade from the perimeter of Point Taken. Some peered out the broken window, keeping their distance in case it shattered and caught the attention of wayward aliens, and others chose to look for the sky. Light, no longer mottled by alien ships, slipped through the concrete wound to comfort the dancers and instructors. A pair of green eyes evaluated the cocktail of concrete, dirt, and dust particles dancing in the shaft of light. This can't be healthy, she thought while rolling over to her hands and knees, we're breathing all of this in.
The overseeing ceiling tear seemed to have gotten larger, too. All of the shaking was likely to blame. Bits of crumbling concrete rained to the floor, warning that it would only get worse. "We need to move," Said the girl as she started scrambling for her back, staggering to her feet in the process.
"What?"
"Are you crazy?"
"I'm not going out there!"
"Cori, no way!"
Several other forms of protest arose but she shook her head. Coriander Henson snatched up her duffle bag and let it fall in its usual place between her shoulder and neck. "Coriander Marie Henson you stay right here!" Snapped Ms. Lovell, the tap instructor. She was a blonde woman in her mid-thirties trying to keep a student, Alexandra Uman, from having a panic attack. Mrs. Greenwald, a tall, broad-shouldered redhead with gray eyes, gave her a similarly pointed look as she delved into her personal stash of snacks to feed them all.
"We're not safe here!" Cori pointed up to the deteriorating ceiling with a pale hand. As if to support her claim, more pieces of ceiling dropped down.
"We're not safe out there, either." Breathed Carmen Novenas as she started to question her friend's sanity. Who would want to go out there? All traces of unearthly alien humming ceased to exist, but car horns, roaring, and something metallic and ear-shattering could be heard beyond the safety of the building. Cori exhaled through her nose, feeling tension bloom between her temples. It beat strong and steadfast in her head, almost in-time with her heart.
She was scared, too, but didn't they see? With those aliens distracted they could seek refuge in a better building! Yes, it was all making sense. Her pulsating head was helping her mind craft a plan, acting as the tempo to her thoughts. There's fourteen of us, thought Cori, using her long, pale fingers to draw numbers in the dusty layer resting over the once pristine floor.
And one and two and three and for and - the pinpricks of pain kept her alert, fought off her fatigue. Made her calculations quicker.
So we can leave in seven pairs of two. In intervals. The cars will provide decent cover, though they may act as a deterrent.
Cori darted across the room on her long, lean legs to rummage through her friends' bags. What makeshift weapons could they have? I don't think we're going to kill them with tampons, she mused dismally while tossing the small box over her shoulder. Her pale skin began to flush as the musty air settled around them like a thick blanket. At the moment, death had three forms: aliens, fear, and heat.
If she was going to die at the age of twenty-six, she was going to die from something lethal. Dying from something petty like heat or fear would only make people say, "That fits her. She was rather boring, you know? Always in the background. Died a virgin, too, isn't that sad?" People weren't going to say that about her, Cori decided. Her pillaging turned up three spritzer bottles of perfume, one can of mace, two pair of heels, and a nail file. Add her personal taser to that assortment, and they might have a fighting chance. Coriander stuffed the perfume bottles and mace deep into the heels before grabbing the nail file and her taser with her remaining free hand.
The shoes clacked together as the ground shook again. Coriander felt like a shaken soda, registering the sensation of her teeth rattling in her mouth and her B-cup breasts shaking from the rumbling threatening to topple her. Whatever the hell that was, she didn't want to know. She just hoped those alien freaks were absorbing the brunt of that force. "Okay, this is what we have," Her finds clattered to the dusty ground and she dropped her head towards her knees to find air.
Cleaner air and a moment's rest. Her head hurt like hell, it was fucking hot, and she was pretty sure the stress caused her period to come early. It would explain the cramps and terrible fatigue, at the very least, and the intense heat was partly owed to her thick black hair. Mrs. Greenwald had shared her food but it went untouched. They were more interested in the slightly dirty towels lining the balance bars along the back and east wall.
"We're really going to do this, aren't we?" Gulped Faith Bennewitz as she blotted at her eyes and neck with a towel. An uncomfortable silence settled, equal parts fear, disbelief, and determination. We're not going to die, said the girls silently as they eyed one another and clumsily divvied up their only choices for weapons, we're not going to roast in here.
"Okay," Mrs. Greenwald took charge, always the sergeant compared to Ms. Lovell, "here's what we're going to do…" Because the two instructors knew their students, they knew little details that could help them escape safely. Carmen Novenas, for example, had a strong core and arms so she could help boost people over the vehicles if going around didn't look possible. Mousy Faith Bennewitz didn't have a lot of muscle but could rely on her light frame and thin build to weasel under cars if the need arose. Alexandra Uman was naturally panicky, naturally alert and quick – she may not have the most grace, but she could definitely tear across the concrete and cars between Point Taken and surrounding restaurants and shops. Denise Fontaine was especially acrobatic and could flip across the cars without hesitation.
Natalie Ross squeezed her hand comfortingly as they lined up in their ordered pairs and prepared to burst out into the street. Mrs. Greenwald was traveling between the fourth and fifth pairs while Ms. Lovell took the first and second. There was no easy way to assign two instructors to fourteen students. It simply couldn't be done, not in this design, and pairs were going to be left unescorted, regardless. "Alright," Mrs. Greenwald boomed confidently from the epicenter of girls, "confirm your locations before you go. Now!"
And one – "Benny's!"
And two – "Curly Girl!"
And three – "The Golden Plate!"
And four – "Munch Mania!"
And five – "Yogurl's!"
And six – "Danni's Mani-Pedi!"
And seven – "You're Sew In!" Answered Natalie for the two of them. Cori was glad she did. Her throat felt like it wouldn't open. Fear was rational, and Cori felt it triple every time a new pair set off ducking behind cars and signaling to one another until they found safety. She clutched the taser tightly, careful not to accidentally flip the switch or squeeze it out of her wildly sweating palm.
"Before you even started dancing you stumbled twice. You're either uncoordinated, unlucky, or untalented…" Noted Mrs. Greenwald dryly, looking worse than bored to death as she waited to see what Cori could do. Her heart pounded in her ears as she looked to Natalie for encouragement. She was the one who told her to try out here. She didn't tell her one of the teachers was Satan in the female form! Natalie flashed a bright, nervous smile and two thumbs before pressing play on the docked iPod.
Alex Clare's "Too Close" began to play. Cori felt her mind detach from logic, from fear, and just danced. Dancing was something that came easy to her, something that truly moved her. She felt like her nerves were wired for the pirouettes, the graceful bends, and stomach-turning leaps that proved to be very addictive. Fluid movement to music seemed to be in the marrow of her bones.
Dancing was essentially the family heirloom. It had been passed down as both a job and a passion from her grandmother to her mother, to her two sisters, and then to her. Cori swallowed nervously, anxiously awaiting the verdict.
A pause. A chuckle.
"That was surprisingly redeeming. You have a nice form and good lines overall. You're pretty gutsy. I pointed out a weakness you have and you danced anyways. That would've thrown a lot of people off. Not bad, Cori. Hopefully you'll put those guts to good use in my class."
She breathed, aware of the door swinging shut again. It clattered as it closed, as it always had, and she was surprised it hadn't drawn any aliens to them. Cori could only assume they were elsewhere for the time being. That was good – more than good. I will use those guts, she thought as Natalie gave her hand another squeeze and nodded towards the door, dropping her chin and flexing her shoulders like she was about to charge a beast.
Apparently reminiscing about her hit-or-miss audition was took longer than intended. Or the previous pairs simply found cover quicker than they imagined. It was already their turn. Cori held the taser out in her right hand, turning it on, and let the breeze tangle her hair as Natalie threw open their door to freedom. The breeze was refreshing, and for a moment all of her senses forgot fear to feel relief.
Sweat was stripped from her face by the breeze and Cori almost sighed. You're Sew In was six buildings to the right, but they weren't totally scared. The signature needle and thread loop where the 'Y' sat could be seen from the entrance of Point Taken. They ran around cars, took to the sidewalks, even climbed up a few to keep their path unpredictable. Each traveling method gave them a different view of their surroundings, and every five seconds – it seemed, it felt – they were doing a wild scan for unwanted followers.
Cori felt her thighs ache and tighten as she sprinted up the hood of a taxi and slid down the end, a little behind Natalie who chose to circumvent a Honda. "Shit!" Cori's heart jumped in her throat as Natalie disappeared from view. Obviously, she fell, but Cori wondered why. Had an alien slipped by them, undetected, and lashed out from beneath the car? She jogged up to her friend who began to pull herself up while kicking away a topaz-shaped weapon made of blue and damaged silver-gold.
"What is that? God, stupid!" Natalie hissed at the object as she kicked it as best she could. It tumbled across the concrete, hitting the side of the Honda.
"I think it's an alien weapon," Murmured Cori as she pushed on Natalie's back to get her moving. They were only three shops away from You're Sew In now. Natalie chose to pick it up. She had no weapon to speak of and had been relying on Cori's for protection.
"It looks big enough to use as a club," Defended Natalie as she gave it a demonstrational swing and hugged it to her chest.
They continued on, feeling a bit safer with the large gun in their possession. Occasionally they ducked down into the sides of vehicles as they crept closer to their shop, making sure their moving bodies couldn't be identified. Outside the sounds of roaring and fighting rang much clearer, and jangled every nerve far worse than when they were inside Point Taken. Only one shop away now, thought Cori as relief chilled her aching body. Half a shop, her legs pulsed, ached, and Natalie raced ahead to grab the door.
You're Sew In was so close that Cori could see the items on display. Count the square stretches of desolate pavement before the shop. Two concrete squares stood before her and the door, Natalie holding it open eagerly.
"SKREEEE-EEE!"
BOOM!
"HOLY FUCK!" Screamed Natalie as the alien body landed hard enough on the car to sink the roof. Did that thing just fly through the air? WHAT THE HELL? wondered Cori as she froze for a moment, paralyzed by the suddenness of it all, to see if the creature had been knocked out cold. It landed on its back, and the right half of its face was swollen, nearly caved in with what looked to be fingerprint impressions, like something ridiculously large had sent it airborne by hand. "Cori, move!" insisted Natalie, her voice rising.
Right move. Get the hell out of here. Get to safety. Cori staggered slightly, brain sending signals to her wobbly legs.
"SKREEEE-EEE!" Apparently the impact hadn't been enough to knock the creature totally unconscious. It was merely dazed. And pissed. Natalie's call simply roused it, and Cori found herself panting 'oh shit, oh shit, shit, shit!' as she started to run. I'm going to make it, I'm going to make it! Realized Cori with a sense of pride that could only be worded as 'Haha, yes! Suck that you alien fucker!' but then something unbelievable happened.
She didn't trip like all of the other being-chased women in movies. No, her safe haven, the people inside, rejected her. Natalie was at the door, reaching out for her, when someone ripped her inside and forced the door closed, holding onto the handle for dear life. Hot breath washed over the back of Cori's neck and she swallowed, clenching her taser in a death grip. The reflection of the beast – a mix between a lean, grey Crypt Keeper and an angry bulldog – was visible in the shop windows, drawing up on Cori quietly, curiously.
Without warning she turned around and jabbed the taser into its body. The device made contact on its throat and it roared. Cori took off, catching a second-long glimpse of it rearing back, shaking its head, and flexing the tiny mouth lined with sharp teeth. If You're Sew In wouldn't have her, she'd try the next shop. "SKREEEE-EEE!" Screamed the creature as it locked bony gray arms around her and bit hard at the meat of her left shoulder.
Cori cried out, pain threatening to tear apart every nerve in her body. She could hear the blood well up from the wound, wetting the creature's lips as it snuggled its maw over the area as if to burrow its teeth deeper. Her hands clenched tightly to ward off the pain and the taser crackled, shooting at the ground. Cori roared in anguish, slamming her elbow back into what felt like its hip bone before jamming the taser into its leg. It faltered again, ripping its bloody mouth up from her shoulder.
Cranking up the intensity with her thumb, Cori dug the taser into its leg again. She could see its leg spasm as the creature dropped her to reestablish its stance. With one leg twitching it couldn't support its weight. It limped towards her on the good leg, growling as spittle and blood flew at her. Cori backed up, blinking back tears as she had to rely on her wounded shoulder for distance in order to make sure the taser didn't slip from her hand.
Basically scooting across the ground on her ass, Cori had an advantage. She was looking at the creature as it approached. It stood like a human and walked like a human. Had legs that met going towards the navel just like a human. There was an area between the legs, below the navel-like region, that caused her to believe these things could have genetalia.
Going on that, she tased the suspected genetalia mercilessly. Like a human male, it crippled to the ground. Half-curled, it still left the genetalia area exposed. Hopeful, and finally standing, Cori tased it again for good measure. And one more time just because the stupid thing had bitten her.
It convulsed unhealthily, crying out and clawing at the ground. Sharp blue-green eyes glared at her. Then it quit moving, deciding to lay down completely. Oddly still, oddly quiet. The blue specks in its chest, ones she hadn't noticed until they flickered dimly, died completely.
Blue-green eyes glassed over.
The door pushed open again, cautiously. "That blue thing in the sky is gone," Whispered one of the people inside with extreme relief.
"Iron Man fell from the sky," Said another.
And I'm falling to the ground, noted Cori as she succumbed to the burning pain in her shoulder, the fatigue, and the feeling of running on empty during this whole ordeal. Before she completely lost consciousness she heard someone say, "Call a medic!"
Let's see if Stark will have to put me back together this time, thought Cori as she closed her eyes and relaxed completely. The aliens were all dead. It would be alright.