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~Tessa~
She stands beneath the shower's spray, letting the water warm her chilled body.
Pepper had given her some clothes and sent her to shower once she had woke up a little while ago. Tessa was thankful for it, her body sweaty and dirty from two days spent unconscious.
Tessa leans against the shower wall, letting the water rain over her. She lets herself enjoy it, not used to warm water. The water heater at her apartment was faulty at best and never heated correctly, so Tessa often took freezing cold showers.
She pushes her hair from her face, reaching out to grab the bottle of shampoo sitting on a small shelf. Tessa squeezes some into her hand and begins to lather it into her hair, creating a bubbly mess.
As she's rinsing her hair, she hears Wraith's familiar rumble. "You're sad, Tessa."
Tessa sighs heavily. "I'm fine, Wraith." She grabs the conditioner next, squeezing an unreasonable amount of shampoo into her hands to rub it into her hair.
"I often know your thoughts before you do, Tessa," says Wraith quietly.
"What have we talked about invasions of privacy?" Tessa mutters, working the sweet smelling conditioner through her hair.
Wraith laughs lowly. "When have I listened to you?"
"Not ever, really," Tessa chuckles.
They're both suspended into a sudden silence after that. Tessa just continues to scrub herself clean and lets the hot water pound against her sore muscles. Then, when Tessa is only leaning up against the shower well does Wraith begin to speak. "You miss her."
Immediately, Tessa feels her lower lip begin to wobble and her eyes flood with tears. She releases a trembling breath, trying to ignore the fact that she misses her mother. Her mother, who done everything but love her and take care of her, is gone. She has no one left. No family.
She has an army of freaks after her and she doesn't know what to do.
All she has at the moment is a symbiote and a little bit of hope left. Maybe it's all she needs.
"It's just gonna be us, isn't it?"
"It's only been us. Always been us."
Tessa sniffles a little, collecting herself quickly. She hates crying- doesn't like that it makes her unable to breathe; doesn't like her eyes swelling; doesn't like the tightness in her chest after she had cried and sobbed and wheezed.
Wraith moves around inside her. He coils in her chest, trying to be comforting. "Be brave. We're going to be fine, Tess."
"I know," Tessa whispers, switching the water off and she steps out of the shower. She begins the process of drying herself; she wraps her hair in a towel and dries the rest of her body quickly so she doesn't chill.
Then, she dresses in the clothes Pepper left her. She's dressed in black leggings and a red nightshirt, both of them huge on her. After drying her hair, both towels are placed in a nearby hamper and she ventures out into the hallway, venturing towards the living area where the Avengers are.
She stays in the hall, watching nervously. Tessa finds herself wary of this group of people, unsure of what to think. She likes them well enough, but doesn't trust them with the knowledge of Wraith. What would happen if they found out about Wraith? Hand her over to the government for experiments? Send her to the Life Foundation?
She knows she'll be used as either an experiment or as a biological weapon.
"Kid! Come and sit down. I promise I'll stop teasing you about falling asleep on Cap," Tony bellows, patting the couch cushion next to him.
Tessa narrows her eyes a little. She can hear Wraith cackling and she mumbles harshly for him to shut up. The teenager walks into the living room, settling on the couch and she meets Tony's smug smile with a glare.
"Hey, I'm just kidding," Tony says, hiding his laughter with a cough.
Tessa glares. Wraith just laughs harder. "W-What do you want me to do?"
Can it, jerk.
Steve makes a sound. "Leave her alone. Tess was just tired and I didn't think a think about it. Besides...it seems she just might like me better." He smiles widely at Tony who scowls at the Captain, arms crossed like a stubborn toddler.
Tessa grins a little, trying to hide her smile. She listens to the Avengers' friendly banter for a while, choosing not to say anything. Even Wraith doesn't speak, contented to listen to the Avengers talk.
The conversation is cut short when Bruce steps into the room, giving a small, half-hearted knock. In his hands he carries some vials, alcohol wipes, and what looks to be a needle.
"Hey, Tessa," Bruce says, offering a slight smile. She hasn't seen Bruce since he ran the tests from earlier. According to Tony, he's been holed up in his lab and Tessa chose not to question it. "Do you care if I get some blood right quick? It'll be the last samples I'll get from you."
Tessa frowns, holding the bend of her arm. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're treating me like a lab experiment."
Bruce gives her a sad smile. "I'm just making sure you're healthy. It's just to check organ functions and other stuff."
Huffing, the teenager holds out her arm. She watches Bruce tear open an alcohol wipe, swabbing the inside of her elbow to clean away germs. Then, he begins probing her arm for a vein. During this, Tessa hears Tony cough. "While Bruce here drains Tessa of blood, I think I'm going to order dinner. Does pizza sound okay to everyone?"
The entire Avengers team gives sounds of agreement. Tessa chuckles, looking down to Bruce who already has stuck the needle in her arm, drawing her blood into a vial.
"Okay, then. I know I want a meat lover's pizza," Tony says, typing into a tablet. "Anyone know for sure what they want?"
Then, there's laughter from Clint. "Of course you're a meat lover." Tessa sucks in a deep breath, struggling not to laugh. Bruce, who kneels before her, is chuckling as he pulls the needle from her arm now. He has three vials of blood in his hand and the other holds a gauze pad that he places in the crook of her arm.
"Shut your mouth, Bird-Brain. One more off comment and you'll starve," Tony says, eyes narrowed.
Bruce gives her a small smile. "Ignore these idiots and you'll be just fine here."
"Thank you, Dr. Banner," Tessa says.
He ruffles her hair, a foreign action to Tessa. The teenager recalls her mother doing it a few times when she wasn't completely strung out on whatever drugs she got hold of. "You're welcome, Tessa. I'm going down to the lab to get these processed. I'll be back later."
Then, the scientist disappears and Tessa is left with a muttering Tony Stark and the three other laughing Avengers and a snickering Pepper Potts.
Tony huffs. "So, I have a large vegetable pizza for Cap- which is disgusting, by the way. A pizza with green olives and green peppers for Nat… Then I have pepperoni for Miss Potts." Then, Tony points to Tessa, lifting an eyebrow. "What does the Human Vacuum want for dinner?"
"Pepperoni pizza is fine," Tessa answers meekly.
"Excellent. Now...what does Bird Brain want?"
Clint chortles. "I'll just have some of your meat."
Tony frowns and Tessa covers her mouth, struggling not to laugh. "I really don't like any of you right now." Then, the genius stalks off to order the pizzas, grumbling to himself about Clint.
"I like these people, Tessa," Wraith rumbles.
They're definitely something else.
…
Tessa's given a guest room on the penthouse floor.
She looks around the room, in awe of all the space. This one room is bigger than the apartment she shared with her mother. The walls are painted a reddish-brown color with simple decorations on them; against the far wall is a bad draped in red and white bed sheets; there is also a wardrobe on the wall opposite the bed with a TV mounted above it. In the corner, where there are ceiling-to-floor length windows, there is a desk with a chair so one could overlook New York City. Then, there is a door that leads into an en-suite bathroom that Tessa hasn't got to check out.
"This is real fancy," Tessa says, looking around the bedroom. "I haven't seen a place that looks this good in a long time."
We've never seen a place that looks like this.
Tessa walks to the bed, feeling the satiny-smooth bed covers. She recalls that her bed was hardly big enough to accommodate her; she had a few pillows that she had sewn up many times and a threadbare blanket that was thin from its years of usage.
She's looking around the room when she hears a knock. Tessa looks over her shoulder to see Tony enter the room, Pepper close behind him.
"Hey, kid," Tony says, offering a lopsided smile. "What do you think about the room?"
Tessa shrugs. "I didn't know just a bedroom could be so big. My apartment could have fit in here."
"It's...different. I know," says Tony. "You might be here a while yet while Bruce makes sure you're fit to be up and running by yourself. He's still convinced you're deathly ill."
"It's just a bug," Tessa shrugs, almost afraid to sit down on the bed.
Pepper smiles gently. "Bug or not, we want you to be okay. I'm fairly sure you're healthy, though- you ate a whole pizza by yourself."
Tessa blushes a little, smiling crookedly. It earns her laughs from Tony and Pepper and she blushes harder, rolling her eyes. "So as long as you didn't waste it, kid. But you had better get some sleep, kiddie. It's getting late."
"Thank you, Mr. Stark," Tessa says, offering the man a small smile.
"You're welcome," Tony says. "And don't call me Mr. Stark. Mr. Stark was my father, and he was a jerk. Do I look like a jerk?"
Pepper gives him a look. "That's debatable." Then, she crosses the floor to Tessa and the teenager finds herself pulled into a hug by the red head. Tessa freezes, thrown off by the contact. Then, she melts into the hug and smiles a little. "Get some sleep, Tessa. Me and Tony are down the hall if you need anything and FRIDAY is always listening if you can't get to us."
"Okay. Thank you, Pepper," Tessa says gently, releasing the woman from the hug.
"Goodnight," Pepper says, squeezing Tessa's shoulder. Then, she's out of the room and only Tony is left standing.
"Sleep tight, Tessa. Just...get us if you need something," Tony says, looking uncomfortable being the adult in this situation.
Tessa decides that's good, because she feels pretty dang uncomfortable, too. "Thank you.
Goodnight, Tony."
Tony shuts the door after that, leaving Tessa by herself. She sits down on the bed, entirely unsure of what to do with herself now that she is alone.
"Rest, Tessa," Wraith says. "We both need it."
Tessa nods, climbing into the king sized bed. She pulls back the blankets, moving pillows around until she has made a comfortable little nest of blankets and sheets and pillows.
As she lies there, she releases a small sound. "Wraith?" Her voice barely is a whisper.
"Yes?"
"You got us?" Tessa asks. She feels frightened to fall asleep...scared of this new place. She's scared of what could lurk just outside her door.
"First sign of danger and we'll be well on our way somewhere else," Wraith answers. "Now sleep."
…
Bullets. The splattering and smell of fresh blood. Bodies laying all over the place.
Her mother's body is at her feet. Tessa screams so she'll wake up, but she doesn't move. The same bullet wound is in her head, her blood making up for the sea of red Tessa is walking in.
Tessa muffles her sobs when she hears whirring of an engine and the drawing of a bow. She stands up, turning to look over her shoulder. The teenager can make out the Avengers, Steve and Tony standing at the front of their group. Tony's blasters are firing up, Steve has readied his shield, the Hulk is in all his glory, Clint has his bow drawn, and Natasha has guns.
They're going to kill her.
Then, Steve utters one word before he leads their attack. "Monster."
…
Tessa wakes with a start.
The room is dark and she can't see a thing. The only sound she can hear is her ragged breathing which is combined with Wraith's low, protective growl.
Overhead, Tessa hears a voice. "Miss Travis? Are you okay?"
Tessa releases a trembling breath. She gulps, looking up to the ceiling. The voice belongs to the AI system, FRIDAY. "I'm fine." Tessa's voice is a dark, husky mix between hers and Wraith's and she covers her mouth in horror. Once Tessa is sure that she and Wraith are both calm, she speaks again. "I'm fine. Just...will you turn the lights on? Please?"
The lights flicker on just as quickly as Tessa commanded. The teenager looks down at her arms, finding that her exposed skin is covered in black tendrils. She hugs her hands to her chest, trying to ignore the tremors wracking her body.
"Are you okay, Tessa?"
Tessa nods. "I'm fine."
So, she sits in silence a few moments, trying to collect her nerves. Tessa tried to convince herself she's safe; tries to convince herself that Wraith is safe.
She tries to convince herself that she's not a monster.
FRIDAY's voice filters through the room again. "Shall I contact Boss or get Ms. Potts?"
"No, thank you," Tessa responds. Then, she falls silent a moment. "Can you show me where the glasses are? I'd like some water."
"When you go into the kitchen, they are in the cupboard over the sink," FRIDAY supplies happily.
Tessa extends her thanks to the AI before leaving her room. She pads to the kitchen in search of the glasses, opening the cupboard quickly and grabs the first glass she sees. Tessa fills the glass up at the tap, drinking the ice cold water quickly. She fills the glass again and drinks another at a slower pace.
Once she's finished with the glass, she quickly washes the cup before drying it and putting it back in the cupboard. Tessa shuts the cupboard door and turns, only to be met by a concerned looking Bruce.
"Dr. Banner?" Tessa asks, frowning a little.
"I just left something up here. I thought Tony might have been awake when I heard someone messing around," Bruce answers. He offers Tessa a soft smile, trying to be soothing. "Did you have a bad dream?"
Tessa nods a little. "Y-Yeah, but I'm fine."
Bruce inches closer to Tessa. He extends a careful hand, laying it on her head as though to check for fever. Tessa can see he's scared and uncertain, and she's concerned as to what. "Tessa, can you answer something for me? I need you to be honest with me, okay?"
"Yes, Dr. Banner," Tessa answers, nodding her head.
"Do you feel okay? Do you hurt, or feel tired?" Bruce questions. "Can you breathe fine? Any lightheadedness?"
Tessa nods, furrowing her brow. "I...I feel fine. I'm just tired...and hungry."
Bruce sighs a little, but nods in acknowledgment. "Fine, then. Just...your results say you're worse than you let on. Maybe we can just keep monitoring you- see how you're doing."
"I promise I'll let you know if I feel bad," Tessa offers, trying to smile for the concerned doctor.
Bruce gives a sad smile. "Thank you, Tessa. Now go back to bed. It's late and you look exhausted."
"I will. Thank you, Dr. Banner," Tessa murmurs.
"Goodnight, kid. If you have any bad dreams, tell FRIDAY to buzz me."
Tessa only nods. "Goodnight."
…
~Bruce~
He scrolls furiously through his search engine.
The doctor has searched everything he could access, on the internet and off. He used up what knowledge he had of what could be wrong with Tessa. She didn't have sepsis; she wasn't going into any kind of shock.
What was wrong with her?
He searches several medical journals for a possible diagnosis. Anything he comes back with suggests sepsis and infections and shock. All of it angers the doctor and all he can do is regroup himself, look at Tessa's test results that were the same, and continue to search.
Bruce's search seemingly comes to a stop when he stumbles across a Life Foundation article describing some of Tessa's symptoms. Renal failure, hepatic failure, cardiac failure, pulmonary failure… He begins filtering through everything the article has to say, finding that some of these same exact things seem to be wrong with Tessa.
Her organs are seemingly failing; she's eating more than any normal teenager and more; it explains that...thing in her body.
A symbiote. That couldn't be possible though, could it? The report said that the symbiotes died along with their hosts and another two died during in-lab experimentation. There couldn't be anymore.
But, if there is a symbiote left, how could have is skipped by Carlton Drake. Bruce met the man on a few occasions and the man was a pompous asshole who played God. That being said, nothing slipped by Drake as attentive as he was.
Huffing, Bruce scoots in his rolling chair towards the computer to see Tessa's scan again. He plays the scan over and over again until the scan went blurry as she had started convulsing.
"What exactly are you, Teresa Travis?" Bruce asks.
Was she a mutant? Was she a monster? Was she something else that Bruce doesn't know how or what to comprehend and explain?
Then, the doctor looks up to the ceiling, releasing a low sigh. He'd get to the bottom of this, once and for all. "FRIDAY?"
"Yes, Doctor?"
"While we have Miss Travis as our guest, I'd like you to watch her closely. Anything...out of the ordinary, record it. There's something going on and I don't know what it is."
"I'll be sure to, Doctor. Now I suggest to get some sleep."
"Of course. Thank you, Friday," Bruce says, leaning back in his chair.
This girl is going to be a pain before this is all said and done.