When they got to the lab, Bruce was standing with his head bent over one of the long countertops Stark had installed when he first bought the place. The two collars were set on either end of the black marble in front of him, each laying flat with the 034 facing out. He looked up as the two of them walked into the room, nodding at a nervous looking Alex with a smile.
"What did you find?" Her voice was tiny, hesitant, like she didn't really want to ask.
"Uuuh Just this," he said, with obvious excitement written on his face.
Without any further explanation, he slid the collars a few inches closer to each other.
Nothing happened.
Clint tilted his head, folding his arms across his chest with a shrug. "I don't get it."
"Two collars," Bruce said, gesturing to the collars on the lab table in front of him.
Clint shook his head again.
Bruce huffed out a little sigh.
Alex hung back, watching Bruce with a hint of wariness in her eyes. She seemed to be trusting them more. At least, she didn't flinch when Clint popped around the corner anymore. He had a feeling it was going to take her a while to fully come to terms with the fact that they weren't going to lock her in some dungeon and throw away the key.
"So there's two collars. So what?" What are you getting at Banner?
"Two collars. Two pieces of different universes."
Oh. "And no explosions."
"Nope." Bruce grinned.
Alex relaxed a fraction behind them.
"But," Bruce said, holding up one finger, "If I start to slide them closer…"
He pushed the two collars an inch nearer to each other on the table. The less damaged one started to vibrate, a tiny tremor at first. Banner slid them a little further and Alex's collar was practically dancing on the table. But the real kicker was the way her collar started to change. It took on the same scratches as the dog's, darkening with the same patina right before their eyes. Bruce slid them so they were almost touching, gripping each in a fist. They lifted towards each other like a pair of magnets. With visible effort, he pulled them apart again.
"So," Clint said, "if there's another Alex..?"
Bruce turned to face Alex while he spoke. "I don't know. Human beings are a lot more complicated than a pair of collars."
She nodded, but there was this weird mix of relief and hesitation in her eyes that Clint couldn't quite place.
"The two of you could merge, or share thoughts, or both die."
Smooth Bruce…
"But, probably no exploding?" Clint said with an eyebrow raise.
"No," Bruce said hurriedly.
"But something will happen?" Alex asked after a moment of hesitation.
"I think so. Maybe. Either way, we'll find out if there's another you at Safeguard," Bruce said.
"Huh?" Alex went pale.
"Oh, Maria just called. They want both of you there when they raid Safeguard Industries."
Nice of her to tell him. To be fair, he probably had an email about it. He was terrible about checking his email. Can't be good at everything.
Clint nodded, but Alex didn't look so good. She'd gone white as a ghost, sweat pricking on her forehead. Her hands wrung together while her eyes found the floor. He stepped up beside her and her attention immediately snapped to him.
"When does she want us to leave?" Clint asked.
"She said something about a jet being here in a couple hours."
Clint tipped his head at Alex. "We better get ready. Come on. I got a suit you can use."
She stood frozen in the doorway, eyes switching between him and Bruce like one of them could save her from the hell that was coming. He wished he could, but the least he could do was get her ready. The thing was just lying around anyway. If Nat couldn't use it, then Alex could.
After a moment, she scrunched up her face and dragged her feet behind him.