It didn't take long for the news to reach Tori in the library. Within minutes of his arrival at the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, every student knew that the man who turned into the Hulk was there speaking to Professor Xavier and Logan. The gossip spread with fear and anxiety. Why had that dangerous man come back? Sure, no one had been hurt the first time he'd been there, but that had been a fluke. The quick thinking of one mutant. The Hulk never left a place without also leaving destruction.
Tori was the only one that heard the news and felt excitement rather than fear. She hadn't thought he'd really return, the man who had sat beside her unafraid and had been kind to her knowing what she could do. She'd told him that he'd be welcome, offered him sanctuary from the outside world that feared him if he wanted it. What could he have been doing there? Something must have been wrong. He was talking with the Professor; of course something was wrong.
Tori found herself pacing in the hallway near the Professor's office. She wasn't exactly sure why she was there, what she was waiting for, but she couldn't bring herself to walk away. Doubts clawed at her as she paced, and she worried that she'd been foolish to convince herself that Bruce might be here hoping to see her. She was dangerous; he was better off far away from her. He wouldn't have come all this way to see her.
The office door opened and Logan's head peaked out. He noticed her and raised an eyebrow. "She's over there, Charles," he said.
With a burning face, Tori approached the office. She'd been caught by the telepath; there was no use running away now. She stepped into the room.
He was there. Bruce stood beside the desk, wearing dirty clothes and sporting dark circles under his eyes, but he smiled when he saw her. "Hi."
She smiled back. "Hi." She turned to the Professor, who watched the exchange with an amused grin. "Sorry, I didn't mean to lurk."
He waved a dismissive hand. "It's quite alright, Tori. In fact, it's good that you're here." She raised her eyebrows in surprise, and the Professor continued, "Dr. Banner here has some rather troubling news for us."
Taking the cue, Bruce nodded. "I was in the area and I stumbled on what looks like a manufacturing and testing warehouse for weapons using alien technology," he explained. "It's close, and I thought it might be a risk to you guys here, so I came by to warn you." Tori's heart skipped a beat, feeling like it was her in particular he had come to warn rather than the rest of the Institute.
"We've gotta take 'em out," Logan said, echoing Tori's thoughts on the situation.
"We were just discussing who ought to go," Professor Xavier said.
"I'll go," Tori said immediately. She glanced at Bruce. "You're going, too?"
He nodded. "I know the way, and, though I'd rather stay out of the fighting, you might need... you might need the Hulk."
"Then you might need me, too," she said, and she met the stares of the men in the room. "If there's a possibility of the Hulk getting out of control, I should be there."
There was pain in Bruce's eyes as he considered this, as he imagined the rampage that Tori would throw herself in front of. He didn't truly understand the scope of her powers, couldn't believe that she could be able to stand the Hulk's brutality. But he nodded because the alternative was allowing the Hulk to roam unchecked.
"I think that's a good idea, too," the Professor agreed. "Logan will be going as well, and I will ask Ororo to accompany you, as well."
Tori thought for a moment, then got an idea. "We should ask Lance." Met with confused stares, she explained. "If we go in and destroy this building, then we're just going to make them mad. I'm sure they'll want revenge, and we'd just be inviting more trouble. But, if we make it look like a natural disaster took out the building, then they'll accept that this is a bad place to set up shop and anyone connected with them will leave us alone."
After a moment's consideration, Bruce said, "That's not a bad point. This Lance can make it look like a natural disaster?"
"He's got seismic abilities," Tori agreed.
Logan scoffed. "Alvers wouldn't agree to do that."
"He might if Kia asked him," Tori countered. "Plus, it's a threat to him and the Brotherhood, too." She nodded, convinced. "He'll do it if she asks."
The Professor thought on the suggestion for a few moments, then nodded. "Would you go tell Kiandra about this plan and ask if she'll pass on the invitation to Lance?" he asked Tori.
She nodded, gave Bruce one last glance, then left the room in search of Kia. It wasn't hard to find her; Kia'd been looking for Tori since she heard that the Hulk was back at Xavier's. She found her in the dining room. "Is it true?" Kiandra asked, excitement sparking in her blue eyes.
Tori nodded. "He's here. But there's trouble, and we're putting a mission team together." Tori explained the situation. "Will you ask Lance? I think he's our best shot at doing this right, though Ororo might be able to pull off something similar with a bit more work."
Kia considered, weighing each facet of the situation. "I think I can swing it. Gotta convince him that the Brotherhood won't know he's helping the X-Men out, but that won't be too hard. Only one here that talks to any of them is Lex, and she's not going on the mission. Yeah, I think I can convince him. I'll meet up with you later, alright?"
Lance did agree to go along, but he took his time getting to the Institute. The rest of the team had long since suited up and were waiting in Professor Xavier's office by the time he arrived. Scott Summers had asked to be included on the mission when he'd heard that Lance was being called in. It was no secret that Scott distrusted Lance, hated him even, and he was coming along to ensure that Lance did nothing to sabotage the mission. Upon arrival, Lance pushed open the door, looked around with lazy eyes, and went to Kia. He stood beside her, resting an arm possessively around her shoulders to say "I am here for her and not for any of you." Scott scoffed at him, which made the grin on his face widen.
Professor Xavier watched the display with something that might have been amusement had he not been so polite. "Thank you for coming, Lance." Lance rolled his eyes in response, pulling Kia closer. She gave him a gentle elbow. "Now, I believe Tori has a plan."
Tori raised her eyebrows in surprise. She had been planning, but she hadn't know that the Professor had been tuned in. "I've got a couple ideas, actually." Xavier nodded encouragingly, and Tori turned to Bruce. "Is there something that looks like it supplies power to the building? Like, a fenced in generator area or something?"
Bruce nodded. "On the south side. I didn't get a good look, but I know enough about generators to know that that's what it's for."
"The side we approach from?" A nod. "Good. I was thinking that Storm could call in a thunderstorm." She looked to the professor who nodded, agreeing to the plan. "First, it make's Tsunami's job a little easier." At this Kia made a finger gun at her and winked. Tori chuckled. "But I think bringing some lightning down on the generator and shorting it out is a good idea, too. I don't know how their security is, but I think it'll be better for us if there's no power to call for backup or use security cameras."
Logan grunted appreciatively. "Good call, kid."
She smiled. She wasn't often asked to lead, though she had a mind for it. In the field, she didn't have the presence to command a team, but she could make a good plan. "I was also thinking that it might be a good idea to get a little more intel on the place before we take it down."
"You want to go inside," Scott guessed, and she nodded.
Ororo put her hands on her hips, considering. "It may do us good to know more about this organization. I agree."
"I think we need an inside team and an outside team," Tori continued. "I think Wolverine and Cyclops can go inside. If the rest of us cause a distraction outside, we can also probably draw a good number of them out before they go in."
"We can do that," Logan agreed.
"Once you get what you need, you come out and Avalanche brings it down. We go home and don't worry about dangerous neighbors."
Bruce cleared his throat and stepped forward. He asked guardedly, "What would you have me do?"
"Nothing, if you don't have to," Tori said, and she watched his body relax. She smiled. "I don't think we'll need the Hulk unless something goes very wrong."
He radiated gratitude and gave a small nod.
"Then it's settled," Xavier said. "You ought to leave soon; it's getting dark. And Tori?" He smiled at her. "Good job."
"I should thank you again," Bruce said, turning to Tori as the group walked through the woods. It wasn't far enough to warrant the X-Jet, so they had set out on foot. Bruce led the way, and Tori walked beside him.
"Why?" she asked.
A small, sad smile crept onto his face. "For my part in your plan."
A look of understand came over her. "You don't seem like you like... what you can do." She looked down at her hands. "I get that. I didn't want to make you if you didn't want to."
"That's the thing," he said, still smiling. "Most people wouldn't have cared. The Hulk is a tool, and that's usually all that matters."
Tori felt a pang in her chest, and her eyes flicked up to his. "It shouldn't be." She returned his smile and said, "I hope it doesn't come to that tonight."
"Me too."
Neither could think of what to say next, so they focused on the path ahead and stayed quiet. Kia and Lance were talking in hushed tones, occasionally laughing in a way that sounded mean-spirited, but the group was mostly quiet.
As she walked, Tori's thoughts could focus on nothing but the man walking beside her. He was so different from anyone she had ever met. He was surely the only one who had ever really understood her and her relationship with her powers. She was far from the only person who hated her powers, who hated this part of her that she had not chosen. Most of those people, though, did not go on to try to use their powers for good, and most of them could turn them off. Bruce was like her, though. He wanted to do good, using his powers or not, willing to put the greater good over his own feelings if the need called for it.
And he wasn't afraid of her.
Tori thought that even her friends, deep down, were a little afraid of her. She didn't blame them; what she could do was terrifying. But Bruce didn't seem afraid. He walked beside her by choice, smiled at her and didn't care about their proximity. It was the simplest thing, the barest kindness, but it meant everything to Tori. Every smile, every step by her side was a gift.
"It should be just up ahead," Bruce announced, turning to the group.
Logan nodded. "Alright, team. Coms on. You all know what your jobs are." He turned to Ororo and nodded.
Ororo's eyes went white as clouds rolled in. Rain began to trickle through the branches above the group then thunder rumbled in the distance. "We are set now," Ororo announced.
It was only another couple yards before they could see the building. It was big and square, made of metal and stone. Bruce had been correct when he'd told them of the penned in generator. A few guards meandered around the perimeter, and there were some big vehicles parked outside. There was no mistaking this place for a benign organization focused on peace. The guards all had big guns and looked sketchy at best. The entrance was to the right, and after giving a nod to the group Logan and Scott walked off to get in position.
Another few moments and Scott's voice came through the coms. "We're in position. Time to turn out the lights, Storm."
Ororo began to levitate a few inches off the ground and a bolt of lightning hit the generators with an explosion. The lights of the building went dark and the area outside was lit up by the fire that had started on the machinery. The guards outside began to running to the scene.
"Now we distract 'em," Kia said, grinning and forming giant spears out of the rain that fell. She ran toward the commotion, Lance curling his hands into fists and running behind her.
"You will keep an eye on things from here?" Ororo asked, looking over at Tori and Bruce. She nodded, and Ororo lifted higher in the sky and moved to the left of the building, drawing the guards further from the door.
When it looked like everyone in sight was mostly occupied, Tori said into her com, "Guards are distracted. Coast is clear, Wolverine. You and Cyclops can head in. Let us know if you need backup."
"Roger," Scott replied.
Tori and Bruce crouched in the brush and watched the chaos unfold. Kia and Lance focused on the guards that rushed to the generator. Kia made spears and swords and arrows out of the falling rain with her hydrokinetic powers, sometimes going so far as to make giant waves and knock out multiple guards. She could use her powers as a shield, too, which worked nicely against the few tasers present; an electrified shield worked better than one made only of swirling water. Lance used his power for localized quakes, unbalancing and knocking over multiple guards at once. He and Kia worked well together, Tori had to admit. Ororo had gone to the left and brought lightning and strong winds down on guards over there.
Tori and Bruce were so engrossed in the action before them that they didn't notice the guard come up behind them until he grabbed Tori. She yelped and Bruce whirled around to face her. The guard was snarling, holding her arms tightly behind her back and twisting. "I don't know who the hell you guys think you are, but you mad a mistake coming here," the man growled.
Pain was shooting through Tori's arms, but she thought quickly. She threw her head back, and her hood fell from her face. She leaned back, reaching and straining her neck. It worked; her forehead connected with the man's exposed jaw, and she could feel his energy rush into her. The man, unused to fighting mutants, didn't realize what his sudden weakness meant until he was unconscious on the ground.
Tori looked down at him triumphantly, but only for a moment. Grunting and growling from Bruce made her look up at him. "No," she breathed. She'd been so focused on freeing herself from her captor she hadn't noticed the beginning of Bruce's transformation.
His body jerked and convulsed as his muscled began to bulge and his skin began to turn green. "You... won't... hurt... her!" The words came out between panting, through gritted teeth.
Tori's eyes widened again, and with barely a thought she threw herself on her knees on the ground beside him. "Bruce, please, I'm alright. You don't need to do this!" She reached a hand out, one with a glove still on it, to try to touch his face, to ground him, to assure him that she was alright.
But he was too far gone, too deep into the transformation, and he growled in her face. It was only a few more lurches before he stopped, body big and green and heaving with heavy breaths. He looked at her and seemed finally able to realize that she was not hurt. "Tori okay?" His hand grabbed her arm, tight enough that she winced.
"Yes, Hulk, I'm alright," she said, then looked down at the hand on her arm. "But you're grabbing me too tightly." The arm fell immediately. Tori stared up at him, a deep sadness filling her chest. "Oh, Hulk, you didn't need to do that. I was alright. I can take care of myself."
The Hulk noticed the body on the ground and snarled again. "No one hurt Tori. Guard make Hulk mad."
Tori took a deep breath, promising herself to unpack all the feelings that came with that statement when they weren't in the middle of a fight, and asked, "Hulk, can you help the team? Smash the bad guys and protect the good guys?" When a look of apprehension entered his green eyes at the thought of leaving Tori there alone, she assured him, "I can take care of myself up here, Hulk. I promise. I'll be here when you're done."
So the Hulk nodded to her and lumbered off with thundering footfalls toward the building.
"Team, the Hulk is out and coming your way," Tori announced into the coms.
"What happened?" Kia asked, and she sounded out of breath.
"On our side?" Scott asked.
"Yes, he said he'll help," she said, ignoring Kia's question, which felt like it needed a longer answer in a more private setting. "Wolverine, Cyclops, how are you guys doing?"
"Almost got what we need," Logan responded. "Keep 'em busy a little longer, then you can set Avalanche on 'em."
"Good," Lance replied. "I'm getting bored out here."
Tori rolled her eyes, but she smiled. She could still see Lance from her place in the brush, and he was definitely not bored. Guards kept coming and coming, and now the Hulk was running toward him. Tori watched the green Avenger tear through the guards and the generator, still smoldering, and some of the building.
He did that for me, she thought in amazement. Bruce let himself become the Hulk to protect me. It had been stupid; Tori was absolutely capable of taking care of herself. But that wasn't the point. His desire to keep her safe had trumped his hatred of that dangerous loss of control. It was a display of affection more meaningful than she had any reason to ever expect, and she couldn't stop thinking about it.
"We're on our way out," Scott's voice came through. "Let you know when we're clear."
"We'll finish up out here," Ororo said, using a giant gust to push a group of guards back.
Tori took a few steps forward, hoping to catch the Hulk's eye. She wasn't sure if he would listen to the com, or even if he still had his after the transformation had wracked his body. "Hulk, we're done," she said, hoping that he would hear. "You can stop."
He must have still had his com in because he turned to look at her. She gave a small wave and motioned for him to come back. He considered the request for a long moment, but he came. Kia, Lance, and Ororo also managed to get back to the edge of the woods. The Hulk looked down at Tori. "Tori okay?" he asked again.
"Yes, Hulk. I'm okay." Tori could feel the eyes of her teammates on her keenly. "Now, Hulk, I don't think you can stay like this."
The Hulk snarled at her. "Hulk stay. Banner keep Hulk locked away. Hulk stay."
It made her sad to hear, and that sadness surprised her. She hadn't really understood the dynamic of the two men living inside Bruce, but it was becoming clearer. She sighed and reached out a gloved hand for his. He allowed her to take it, remembering enough to know that it was her bare hand that would do him harm. "Hulk, I understand," she began, still hyper-cognizant of the eyes of her friends. "I understand that it must be hard to be kept shut up inside Bruce's mind like that, but you must understand why." When the Hulk tried to look away from her, she continued quickly, "Sometimes you lose control, and people get hurt, and the longer you're out, the greater that chance is." He turned back to her with his teeth bared, but she did not flinch. It had been kindness that had reached him that first day; kindness would reach him again. She took another step forward and held his other hand. "You know that's true. But we both know that you don't mean to do that, right? You want to help. So, you know what I think?"
"What?" His voice was gruff, but she could feel that she was reaching him.
"I think that, if you agreed to go away when the danger was gone, Bruce wouldn't worry so much about letting you out. He'd do it more often if he thought you had more control." She did believe it, too. The more Bruce came to believe that the Hulk could control himself, the less he would worry about losing control and letting the Hulk out. It wouldn't weigh so heavily on him.
The Hulk thought for a few, tense moments about this. "Tell Banner Hulk did good," he finally said.
Tori actually laughed, the relief mixing with her affection for both sides of this man. "Of course." She couldn't help herself from reaching up and putting a hand softly on the Hulk's cheek, but she realized quickly what she'd done and stepped back, embarrassed.
He began to change, though the change back into Bruce was much less violent. As Bruce shrunk back down to the size of a regular man, Logan's voice came through. "We're out. You're up, Avalanche."
Lance, who had been silent through that exchange presumably because he had been afraid enough of the Hulk to temper his attitude, took a step forward. "Finally." Lance's eyes rolled up into his head, and the ground began to shake. The tremors were violent, but the foundation of the building remained intact. As his frustration rose, so did the magnitude of the quakes. It finally began to crack, the stone separating and the metal bending, but the skirmish outside had drained Lance's energy, and he was having trouble maintaining the quakes.
Tori took off a glove and took Lance's hand, eyes shut tightly in concentration. He nearly jerked away, but then he felt the surge of power flow into him. The quakes resumed, and Tori poured energy into Lance. It couldn't be much more, couldn't take much more to bring down this building. Her body was getting weak, and she feared what might happen if she passed out before they were finished.
But the tremors ceased, and Tori jerked her hand away as soon as they did. She was dizzy, and her eyes couldn't focus when she opened them. She fell to her knees, unable to keep herself upright, breathing heavy. There was a slight relief as her bare hand his the grass, though she could barely see the hand print of dead vegetation beneath skin, but the relief was short-lived.
It was Logan who eventually knelt beside her. He reached a hand out. "Take it, kid. You did good."
"Are you... sure?" she asked, her head spinning and her breath ragged.
"Yeah." He lifted her hand to his skin.
Energy poured into her, energy of a man with an intense healing factor. She felt her mind return to her, felt the dizziness subside, felt her breathing quiet, felt the strength return to her limbs. She pulled her hand away and put her glove back on immediately. "Thank you." She looked up at Logan, who was a gruff but very good man, and smiled.
He nodded to her and helped her stand. "Better bring this info back to the Institute." He waved a ring of flash drives around.
"Good. I'm done hanging out with you X-Men," Lance said, but the words sounded hollow and he kept glancing at Tori with something like awe in his eyes.
She barely noticed. She walked up to Bruce, whose clothes were in tatters and who still knelt on the ground. She held her hand out and offered a smile. "Need a hand?"
He sighed and rubbed his forehead with a hand but took her hand and allowed her to help him to his feet. He walked beside her, following the group a few paces behind, and he groaned. "I'm so sorry. I couldn't... I didn't... I'm ashamed."
She stared at him. What could she say? "Bruce, I didn't need your protection," she started, picking each word carefully, "but the fact that you would... do that for me means more than I can say." She reached out and gingerly placed a hand on his arm.
His red face turned to her in surprise. He looked at her, at her earnest and hopeful and doubtful and sad and happy face, at the hand she'd placed on his arm, and he smiled. It lasted only for a moment, then remembrance came back to him. "You talked the Hulk down," he said in awe.
Her head tilted to the side. "Do you remember it?" She'd been under the impression that the Hulk and Bruce were separate consciousnesses who shared very little memory.
"A little. We... It's always different, how much I remember and how much control I have. I think he let me in this time, let me see what you said to him."
"Was I right?" she asked after a pause.
He sighed. "Maybe. I still don't know that I can trust him."
She gave his arm a small squeeze. "I think you can."
"Hey, Tori," Kia said, spotting her friend exiting the bathroom after showering. "We missed dinner. Wanna make something together?"
Tori tossed her towel and uniform into her room and asked, "What do you want?"
Kia thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Nugs?"
Tori chuckled. "So not really 'make something.'" They both laughed. "Yeah. Let's go make some nugs."
They fell in step beside each other, heading down the hall toward the kitchen. "Hey, Tori?" Kia put a hand on Tori's shoulder, which was covered by a sweatshirt. "Thanks for what you did with Lance tonight. He won't forget it."
Tori turned slightly pink at the compliment and shrugged. "I was just trying to help."
Kia smiled. "I know. So was he, mostly. I just... I keep hoping he'll realize what it means to be on a real team, one that looks out for each other no matter what. I dunno if you've noticed, but the Brotherhood doesn't really do that."
Tori let out a small chuckle. "I had noticed that."
Kia grinned. "Yeah, they're kind of the pits. And I keep trying to help Lance realize that, see that things don't have to be that way, but there's only so much I can do." She leaned in and whispered, "Especially with Scott fucking Summers around being a dick to him all the time."
Tori couldn't disagree. She wasn't even really sure what had started the feud between the two, the feud that went well beyond the expected animosity between a member of the X-Men and a member of the Brotherhood. It was there, though. Scott was always extra suspicious about Lance, always the first to blame him or put him down. Tori knew that Kia didn't like Scott, hated him for time and again undoing the work that she'd put in to convince Lance the X-Men were a good group to be a part of. It pushed Lance further and further away.
"So, thanks. 'Actions speak louder than words,' and all that bullshit."
They were grinning at each other when the entered the kitchen. A noise from the table caught their attention, and they saw Bruce standing up awkwardly. He was clean and dressed in clothes not ripped to shreds. "Hi," he said, giving them a small, sheepish smile. "I... We missed dinner, but I realized I wasn't super comfortable digging around through someone else's fridge." His face turned pink. "I've been sitting here trying to think of what to do for a while, now."
Tori giggled, and Kia said, "Well, you're in luck because we're making chicken nuggets."
"When you dine with the X-Men," Tori said, walking over to the oven and turning it on, "you only get the best."
Bruce smiled. "Thank you."
Kia opened the freezer and gasped. "Tori! We have mozz sticks too! We're also having mozz sticks!"
"Well, now you're really in for a treat," she said, smiling at Bruce.
Once the frozen meal was in the oven, they sat down at the table with Bruce. "So," Kia said, turning her attention to him, "how does a team up with the X-Men compare to working with the Avengers?" Tori snorted at the question, at the fishing for compliments, but Kiandra stared intently at their guest, waiting for a response.
Bruce allowed himself to smile, too. "Working with the Avengers couldn't compare," he said, and it was clear to everyone that he was just saying it to get on Kia's good side.
It worked, though, and she grinned. "I believe it."
But there was something in the way that he looked at Tori when he said it that made her face flush and made her question whether the answer had really been all for show.