Alright, this is the last chapter I have for a while. I'm sorry I couldn't get more done.
Saturday, February 11th, 2012
Carol had a frown plastered on her face the entire ride to the hospital. Despite her insistence to the EMTs that she was fine and that they should be focusing their resources on the people who were actually hurt, they refused to listen to her and essentially forced her onto a stretcher. Well, "force" was a bit of a strong word. It was more like she had no other choice. If she fought back, she'd hurt them, so her only option was to suck it up and go along with what they said. However, that didn't mean she couldn't be angry about it.
Right away, she was strapped down and restrained. Although she had demonstrated that she was perfectly ambulatory, the EMTs insisted that she could have unseen injuries either from the blast or the building coming down on top of her. Carol was highly doubtful of that, given that she had been in much worse explosions and came out the other side no worse for wear but the completely human EMTs who likely had no idea that aliens even existed until about five months prior weren't going to believe that. They needed to stop her from moving to prevent her from aggravating injuries, and she had to let them do their jobs. So, Carol was strapped down to the stretcher and had two blocks placed on either side of her head to prevent her from turning it. The only upside was that she got to look at the evening sky up until they loaded her in the ambulance. It was a soft shade of golden orange; very pretty.
The ride to the hospital took longer than she thought it should. She couldn't see where they were going and her ears were still ringing from the blast, so she could just barely hear what the EMTs were saying. Whatever on-the-spot assessments they were making of her injuries were lost to her, though she doubted they were anything to be concerned about. Carol was more worried that one of them would notice that she bled blue than anything else.
As far as she could tell, Carol was only a little scraped up and had a few minor flash burns from the explosion. It wasn't any worse than what a sunburn would normally be for a human. There was blood on her person, but she was sure the EMTs had dismissed it as an "unknown substance." She was thankful that she wouldn't have to explain it right then, but she knew once she got to the hospital, it was going to come up.
The hospital they ended up taking her to was Metro General. It was apparently the closest ER/trauma center. She had to remain strapped to the stretcher as she was wheeled inside and as they triaged her. She figured she probably should lie, but honestly any lie she gave they would probably figure out, so she told the truth. Her name was Carol Susan Jane Danvers. She was born on October 1st, 1959. She had no idea what her social security number was, and she didn't have insurance. No, she wasn't pregnant. Yes, she was sure. She was over fifty, she'd had a hysterectomy, she hadn't had sex in more than a year, and the last person she had sex with was a woman, so she could be certain. It was all incredibly irritating – especially since it didn't look like the nurse taking her information believed her. Despite that, the woman still punched in all the information Carol had given her. Whether it was because she didn't want to put up the fight or because she thought Carol was delirious from her trauma, she wasn't sure but whatever the case, they ended up moving on to the next stage of process – removing Carol's clothes.
Carol tried insisting yet again that she was fine to stand on her own and take off her clothes herself, but again the nurses didn't want to risk irritating any potential internal injuries, so she had to remain strapped down while they cut off what remained of her clothes. It was degrading, but at least they did it in relative privacy, the nurse who did it was another woman, and she was quickly covered with a johnny. After that, she was wheeled to another part of the hospital where they kept the MRI and X-ray machines.
She was then gently moved from the stretcher to the bed of the MRI machine. It was expressed to her that she needed to remain totally still, and Carol tried hard not to roll her eyes. If she didn't get it the first fifty times, she certainly got it now. As she rolled into the machine, Carol closed her eyes and focused on taking deep, even breaths. The entire time she reminded herself to be patient and that Terran medicine was quite a bit behind what she was used to. She just had to put up with it and she'd be free to go.
After what seemed like an eternity, Carol was rolled back out of the machine and was told she had no signs of any internal injuries. It was all she could do not to jump for joy. Carol stood up and was about to walk out, but a nurse grabbed her by the arm and told her she had to wait for another nurse to come back with a wheelchair.
"Hospital policy." If those words were meant to be apologetic, it was completely lost on Carol.
Regardless, Carol did as she was told and waited for the nurse with the wheelchair to arrive. When he did, she sat down and tried to wheel herself out of the room, but the male nurse grabbed the wheelchair by the handlebars and pulled her back, saying that he was supposed to be pushing her. Carol so desperately wanted to scream at the top of her lungs and punch the guy out but managed to hold back.
Just be patient, she told herself. Just be patient. Being patient won't kill you.
The nurse pushed her down a labyrinth of hallways leading back to the ER. There, Carol was brought to an empty bed and told to sit and wait for the doctor to check her out. She asked if she would be allowed to leave after that, but the nurse acted like he didn't hear her and walked off. Carol's right hand started to ball into a fist.
Patience. Carol took a deep breath in and as she let it out, she uncurled her fingers. You don't want to blow up the hospital, too.
Carol grimaced at the thought. She could feel the edges of self-blame dredging up from deep within her subconscious. She kept the tidal wave back by reminding herself of the facts.
It was an accident.
I was defending myself.
Those women had powers.
It was two on one.
I only intended on hitting my attackers.
I couldn't have predicted her moving out of the way.
I couldn't have known there was a gas line there.
Carol repeated that to herself as many times as necessary. Slowly, her self-blame quieted and retreated to the dark depths of her mind. She could never fully get rid of it, but she could keep it at bay by reminding herself that she did the best she could with the information she had. That couldn't make everything right, but it did serve to reassure her.
Once her mind calmed, Carol began looking for any way to distract herself. She'd already been waiting for quite a bit of time and she was wondering where that doctor was. She ran her fingers through her hair and was disgusted to find that the ends of it were rather dry and brittle. Pulling a few strands closer to her face, she rubbed them between her fingers and watched as it disintegrated right before her eyes.
"Unbelievable," she muttered to herself.
Feeling through the rest of her hair, Carol found it was only the first inch and a half or so that was singed. In annoyance, she started to pull and pick at the ends of her hair until the singed bits came out and crumpled away. She hoped it would make her feel more comfortable, but all it seemed to do was make her feel even grosser and look like a crazy person when the privacy curtain was pulled back and a woman stepped into the space.
For a moment, Carol allowed herself to hope that this person was the doctor, but they were dashed when she saw that the woman was wearing a blazer and a matching pencil skirt instead of the expected lab coat and scrubs. Carol frowned as she continued her appraisal. The woman looked the same age Carol was supposed to and had graying hair tied up in a tight bun. She put on a reassuring façade, but the coldness of her eyes cut right through it. Already, Carol didn't like her.
"Good evening, Miss Danvers…"
"Captain." The woman's eyes narrowed in annoyance at being cut off.
"What?" she said, her disdain barely restrained.
"Captain Danvers," Carol corrected. "Not Miss Danvers. Captain Carol Danvers."
"Right," the woman dragged out the word. "Well, I'm Amanda and I'm from this hospital's registry department. I just have a few questions about the information you provided us with when you checked in."
"I really don't have insurance and I really don't know my social security number," Carol said right away. Amanda shook her head.
"I already know that," she said. "And I wasn't going to ask about that until I clarified a few other things."
"Which would be…?" Carol asked.
"Why you're trying to use a dead woman's personal information." Carol could only blink in confusion.
"What are you talking about?"
"Captain Carol Danvers died in 1989," Amanda explained. "She was twenty-nine years old. There's no way you could be her. Even if there was a mistake, you are far too young. So, care to explain?"
Honestly, couldn't explain because she was only just realizing how badly she messed up. She had forgotten that as far as the United States government was concerned, Carol Danvers was dead. She never bothered to get the declaration of her death reversed. It never really mattered because she was rarely on Earth. Well, now it mattered.
"Uh," was all Carol could really come out with for a moment. "I told the truth." It was the only defense she had, even if it made Amanda's face twist like she had just had a lemon forced into her mouth.
"Well," she said in the most tutting of voices. "If that is the case, I hope you don't mind explaining that to the police."
A flash of panic went through Carol. There was a full thirty seconds where the words crap, I'm screwed, were the only ones that existed in her mind. That came to an end when the curtain was once again pulled back, this time revealing two familiar faces.
"That won't be necessary, ma'am." Carol had never been happier to see Nick Fury and Maria Hill than she was in that moment. Fury's naturally imposing figure had Amanda shrinking back a bit. Somehow, though, she was still brave enough to speak.
"Excuse me, sir," she said. "But you're not supposed to be back here."
"Am I?" Fury questioned.
"No, you're not," Amanda said. "So, if you would kindly leave…" Fury whipped out his badge before she could even think of saying anything more.
"Director Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D.," he said before pointing his thumb at the woman next to him. "This is Commander Maria Hill. We showed our credentials to the woman at the front desk."
"Well, that's fantastic for you," she said. "But what do you want?"
"We're here to escort Captain Danvers to a safe location." Amanda raised an eyebrow.
"Really?" she said. "Well then I'd have to inform you that there is a question as to this woman's identity."
"Really?" Emboldened, Amanda's glare turned hard.
"Yes, really," she said.
"Well, I know one way to clear things up." Fury pointed to one of the florescent lights above them. "Would that cost a lot of money to replace?"
"Well, no."
"Carol."
She didn't need to be told twice. Carol balled her hand up into a fist and pointed it at the light above their heads. She released a burst of energy, causing the light to explode and glass shards rained down. Thankfully, they didn't fall on any people, everyone standing just out of the way. It caused Amanda to jump, though, and let out a pathetic little squeak of a yelp.
"Only Carol Danvers can do that," Fury remarked. "That's all the proof I need, but if you need a little more, I think we can work something out."
Before Amanda could respond, Hill caught Carol's attention, gesturing for her to follow. Carol couldn't have been more relieved. She hopped down off the bed and stepped past the curtain, leaving Fury to hash things out with the hospital employee.
Following Hill out into the hallway, Carol was overwhelmed. She hadn't really been paying attention to the noise or what had been going on around her, so she hadn't noticed how crowded the place had become. Almost every bed had been filled and there were even a few people on stretchers waiting to be placed for treatment. Normally, crowds didn't get to Carol, but knowing these people were all there because of her…
She forced herself to take a deep breath.
I did the best I could, she reminded herself. It was an accident. I don't need to blame myself.
She let the breath out and scrambled to find a suitable distraction.
"How did you guys know I was here?" Hill only glanced back once before explaining.
"You used your real name to register here," she said. "Fury has a program set up to alert him if a person of interest shows up in hospital registries or police arrest records. You're one of those people." Oh, so maybe she hadn't messed up as bad as she thought.
"Should I be flattered?" she asked.
"It's for your safety," Hill clarified. "And everyone else's."
"Right," Carol remarked as they came to a stop outside the women's restroom. There, Hill handed her a plain, white paper bag.
"These should all be your size," Hill said. "I took the liberty of getting you fresh underwear as well."
"Thank you." She appreciated that as the bra and underwear she was wearing felt way too sweaty and grubby even though she had only been wearing them for a day or so. Hill nodded.
"I'll be waiting for you out here."
With that, Carol walked into the bathroom and took up residence in the nearest available stall. Opening the bag, she saw that she had been provided with a pair of navy-blue – and thankfully, logo-less – sweats, along with the aforementioned underwear, a white t-shirt, and brand-new socks and shoes. Carol wasted no time in ripping of the johnny and tossed it to the ground, along with her original bra and underwear as soon as she managed to peel it off her skin. In fact, some skin came with it and it made Carol disgustedly realize her burn was already starting to peel away. A particularly thin patch came off that parachuted slowly to the ground. The very sight of it made her want to gag.
Good thing this doesn't happen to me as frequently anymore.
Unwrapping the plastic coverings and pulling off price tags, Carol got the clothes on without much hassle. They fit her well – not too baggy or too tight. She didn't realize until she got to the very bottom of the bag, though, that she had missed one item. Pulling it out and unfolding it, Carol frowned when she saw it was yet another baseball cap with the S.H.I.E.L.D. emblem on it.
"God damn it, Fury!" she muttered as she reluctantly pulled it on. As much as she hated to admit it, depending on the situation outside, she might need it to help hide her face as she left. So, she had no choice but to wear it. That didn't mean she wasn't going to complain about it, though.
Gathering up all the wrappings and tags, Carol threw them in the white bag, along with her previous set of underwear. There was no way she'd be able to wear them again, so she was better off throwing them out as well. Collecting the johnny off the floor, Carol draped it over her arm before crumpling the bag into the tightest ball she could. She then left the stall, tossing the bag in the trash on her way out of the bathroom.
When she stepped out of the bathroom, she saw that Fury had joined Hill. Carol felt her stomach clench.
"How'd it go?" she asked.
"I took care of it," Fury assured right off the bat. "The hospital's releasing you into our custody and will remove you from their records. It'll be like you were never here."
"That's good," Carol remarked.
"However, we are going to have to take you to a secure location." Carol shrugged.
"I wouldn't expect anything less," she said. "So, which way goes out?"
"This way," Fury gestured with a nod of his head. Carol started walking in the direction indicated with Fury and Hill falling into step beside her. "And on the way there, you can explain what the hell happened." Carol let out a sigh. She knew she wasn't going to get off that easy.
"It was an accident," she had to make clear first and foremost.
"I can see that," Fury said. "Considering a whole block of New York City is gone."
"I was attacked," Carol said. "Cornered by two women with powers. I had no choice but to fight back."
"Women with powers?" Hill questioned. "What do you mean?"
Carol launched into an explanation of what she had overheard the previous night and her attempt to find out more information. Neither Fury nor Hill needed to be told that as soon as she heard the word "Kree," there was no keeping Carol away. She was going to get to the bottom of things no matter what. What took them by surprise, though, was the name of the group that she had been investigating.
"The People's Unity Church," Hill repeated. "You're absolutely sure."
"Yes," Carol said. "I'm sure."
"Shit," Hill cursed.
"That's not good, is it?" Carol asked.
"No, Fury confirmed. "It means things have gotten a lot worse for us."
Thank you to Senisra for the comments on AO3! It really means a lot!
I don't know what's wrong with me. I just can't focus on writing this story anymore. Maybe it's because I've been going at it non-stop for almost two years? I haven't taken a break or written anything else in that time because I've been so persistent on finishing it, and I'm scared if I do take a break and write something else, I'll never come back to this. I don't want to leave people hanging, but I also don't know what else I can do. As of right now, I'm writing Chapter Fifty-Five and I've been at it for almost a month. I can't get myself to focus on the story. I don't want to leave people hanging, but just be aware that's what might happen.
I'm so sorry about this everyone. If I have enough chapters written, maybe I'll be back in September, but honestly, I'm not going to promise anything.
Remember kids, you never know how much of an undertaking something is going to be until you actually do it.
Originally uploaded to FFN on 1/25/21.
