"Let's watch Pretty Woman."
Darcy took the TV remote from Max's hands and began flipping channels. She said she was on a break from being Jane's lab assistant, but it seemed to Max that Darcy was always on a break. They had a bowl of potato chips between them, but it was nearly gone.
"I've never seen it," Max shrugged. "What's it about?"
Darcy gasped. "You've never seen it? It's a masterpiece of the late 80s with, like, Julia Roberts and Richard Gere and she's a prostitute with a heart of gold and he's this super rich guy that hires her to be his girlfriend; there's a makeover scene and a fighting scene and generally, it's hailed as the best film of our time."
"What time is that again?" Max asked, grabbing a handful of chips.
"The time where a girl's sugar daddy might just end up marrying her," Darcy replied.
"Hard pass," Max said sarcastically.
"Well, it's not my fault you've barely seen anything," Darcy said. "What do you want to watch?"
Max scanned the guide on the TV and something caught her eye. She let the remote hover over the movie title: The Avengers. "What's this one?"
"Oh, a movie about those superhero guys. You know, Thor, Tony, and that crew of SHIELD lackeys?" Darcy seemed to grow bored. "It did really well in the box office, but it's completely watered down. Thor said the guy they got to play him doesn't have the right shoulders or something."
"We're watching this," Max said with determination.
"Okay..." Darcy drew the word out until it was several syllables long. "Prepare for three hours of back story."
As Darcy soon fell asleep on the couch, Max watched the movie with rapt attention. She might hate superheroes, but she needed to find out everything she could about the people she'd been stuck with, even if it wasn't pretty.
Especially if it wasn't pretty.
"You need some new clothes," Pepper said as she set her mug of coffee down on the kitchen table with the faintest of clicks.
"No I don't," Max replied, her mouth stuffed with an entire piece of toast.
"Sorry, but I'd like my yoga pants back sometime in the near future," Pepper glanced down at what Max was wearing. "And I don't think just wearing the same ACDC t-shirt of Tony's is wise. What about when you need to wash it?"
Max shrugged. "I turn it inside out."
Pepper rolled her eyes. "We're going to Nordstrom today to pick out some nice clothes for you so you don't look like you're constantly on your way to zumba class."
"Why can't an agent just go grab some stuff? I'm not picky." Max put butter and jam on the next piece of toast with a heavy hand. "And what's zumba?"
Pepper pursed her lips together. She was either done putting up with Max's unwillingness to go and socialize or holding back a smile. "I'm lending you something presentable and we're going to go shopping."
Max opened her mouth to object again, but she closed it nearly as quickly. Pepper had that effect on her occasionally; Max was so used to being in charge that someone not taking no for an answer and simply plowing forward wasn't exactly new, just startling. Pepper is the one in charge now, Max merely a beta.
And that is how Max found herself in a pair of expensive jeans tailored impeccably for someone who was for sure not the same measurements as her and a button down shirt that smelled of jasmine.
She hated it.
"Hold this," Pepper said as she considered different cardigans from a colourful rack deep in the department store. She handed off a soft green sweater to Max. "And tell me if you see anything you like."
Max shrugged. Her hands were full of different outfits Pepper had chosen for her. "I'm not exactly into fashion. Clothes were always picked out for me."
"You've never seen something and wanted to wear it?" Pepper asked. She checked the size of a top and held it up to Max for comparison.
"Not really," Max replied. "We always took what we could get."
"We?" Pepper raised an eyebrow.
Max bit her lip at the transgression. "The royal we."
Now Pepper laughed. She seemed much less stressed here, doing a simple task like picking out clothes, than she ever did around the apartment. "Okay, your Highness. Let's get you into something that wasn't made before you were born."
Max rolled her eyes. "Alright. If you say so."
They walked towards the changing room nearby and a salesperson unlocked one for her. There weren't mountains of clothes, per say, but it was definitely enough for a full wardrobe. T-shirts and jeans a plenty, with new workout gear and a few skirts and dresses thrown in. She wasn't one for the tight suede skirt that seemed to be Pepper's favourite, but the circle skirts were nice. Max could fight in those easily.
"What do you think?" Max came out in the green sweater from earlier and a pair of black jeans with a slit across the knee. Tony's old boots were still on her feet; she wouldn't part with them.
Pepper's face lit up with a smile and she clasped her hands together. "Perfect. You look amazing. Does it all feel okay?"
Max furrowed her eyebrows and pulled at the ends of the sweater. "Yeah, I guess. It's not itchy, which is nice. I'm used to sweaters being itchy."
"It's cashmere," Pepper answered. "Go try on one of the skirts with the black t-shirt. You liked that one, if I remember correctly."
"As you wish." Max closed the door of the dressing room behind her and made a beeline for the black graphic tee hanging by the mirror, but as she was about to take it off of the hanger, she froze.
In the mirror, behind her, was the man from the diner.
The hanger clattered to the ground, bouncing off of the toe of her boots.
"Max, you alright?" Pepper called from outside the dressing room.
Max swivelled around and saw that there was in fact, nothing behind her, but when she turned to the mirror, he was there again. Slowly, he brought his finger to his lips and grinned, shark teeth on display.
Quiet, he mouthed to her.
"Y-yeah!" Max called to Pepper. Her eyes were glued on the shark's reflection. "I'll be right out!"
He was mesmerizing, even though he shouldn't have been. There was something about him that drew her in and didn't want to let her go. He dropped his finger from his lips and stepped forwards, putting a hand on Max's shoulder.
She gasped quietly and turned around again, finding no one there once more. But I can feel it, she wanted to shout. What are you?
The man simply grinned and then, slowly began to move his mouth again. This time, she heard it, even if it was only in her mind.
They know. He stared directly at her, the terrifying grin dropping from his face. And they won't be patient this time.
He disappeared as quickly as he'd come, leaving Max weak in the knees. She dropped to the floor and grabbed at the t-shirt, pulling it on in a daze.
"You ready to show me what it looks like?" Pepper asked from outside the dressing room.
Max couldn't look in the mirror anymore, she didn't trust her own eyes. Her hands were shaking and she paused for a moment, gripping the hanger from the shirt with enough force that it creaked with the strain.
She was better than this. She knew it.
"Yeah, I'm coming," Max called back to Pepper. She exited the dressing room, her face blank.
"Do you like it?" Pepper asked. She was prodding Max for her opinion on any of the clothes.
Max shrugged. "They're alright."
Pepper pursed her lips. "Well, is there anything at all that jumps out at you?"
Max opened her mouth to say no, but paused when she spotted something behind Pepper's back. The mannequin was dressed in a bright, fluffy skirt, but it was the top that interested her. Draped over the shoulders was a black leather jacket with studs along the shoulders. It looked sturdy, strong; a relic of what Max used to be.
"That." She pointed at the jacket. "I want that."
Max entered the main living floor of the tower and slung her bag across the kitchen table. She stretched, her muscles sore from the training that morning and picked up a sweatshirt she had left sitting on the chair after she and Pepper went shopping the day before. She pulled it over her head, oblivious to the unusual silence in the room.
Someone cleared their throat.
Max whipped her head up to see Tony, Steve, Natasha, and a few other people sitting in a circle in the living room. They'd moved the couches to the side and arranged themselves amongst a heap of pillows. There were snacks scattered in bowls between them, along with several bottles of expensive-looking alcohol. Natasha held the neck of a Russian vodka bottle and lazily raised it to her lips. She drank it like water.
"Uh, hello?" Max asked, caught like a deer in the headlights. "Is this an intervention?"
The participants in whatever meeting was happening were in various stages of undress. Steve still had on most of his clothes, save for his button-down shirt and a sock. Tony, meanwhile, was nearly naked and looked like he was beginning to shiver in the cold. Two other men Max didn't know, one with dark hair and the other with fairly light blonde locks, were in boxers and t-shirts. A hulking figure with long blonde hair was just in a tank-top. Natasha was fully clothed.
"Not exactly," Tony said uneasily. "More like...
"Strip truth or dare," Natasha explained. She took another drink. "I'm winning."
Max raised an eyebrow. "I can see that. Nice digs, Steve. I can see you're taking your time."
Steve shot her a pointed look. "Individual socks count. They completely do."
"No, that's call being a prude," Tony shot back.
"I was in the army during World War II. That's about as far from being a prude as possible," Steve said.
"Well," Max drew out the word. "I'm going to go not be crazy in my room." She began walking away.
"Your room?" The dark-haired main bunched his eyebrows together.
"No, wait, meet the gang." Tony attempted to grab her leg as she went past, but he was rather drunk and fell over.
"Fine." Max crossed her arms. "Who's the gang?"
"That's Banner, Thor, and Clint." Tony pointed to them in turn. He twisted around to point at Max. "This is Max, guys."
Max stared at them with wide eyes when she realized who was sitting on her living room floor. The goddamn Avengers were having a grand old time drinking their livers away on this fine Wednesday. She tried to contain her warring emotions of admiration and pure hatred.
"And Max is...?" Clint grabbed the vodka from Natasha. She flicked her chin at him. They had a soft sort of camaraderie.
"Leaving." Max replied.
"No, no, no," Tony managed to wave her back over, careful to avoid touching her leg like he had tried to earlier. "Max lives with us now. Mutant. Adopted. Or not. Are you adopted? Can't remember. Pepper probably signed the paperwork."
"You adopted a mutant?" Clint nearly spit out his vodka. "You can barely take care of yourself, let alone another half-human being."
"He didn't adopt me," Max narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm just his newest freeloader."
"Nice to meet you, Max," Banner held out his hand for her to shake. She stared at it for a few moments until he dropped his hand. "What brings you to the Avengers?"
"Is that what you guys are?" Max gestured to the entire group, trying to downplay her knowledge of their intense battles in New York City. She swore underneath her breath. "Great, don't destroy the tower."
"Come play with us," Natasha said it so softly that Max wasn't sure she had even heard her. There was a dangerous glint in her eye. "Who knows? You might even win."
Max glanced down at Tony for a second, considering the offer. She would go to her room and do what she did every night, which was a grand total of nothing, or she could watch the equivalent of an uncle slur his words and drop some national secrets. The latter won out.
"Alright," Max said, dropping down next to Thor.
The group let out a cheer, all of them clearly inebriated with the exception of Steve and Natasha. Max looked up at Thor's hulking frame, the only person she'd ever met to dwarf her even while sitting down.
"Would you like a drink?" Thor held out an empty cup.
"Uh, sure," Max said. "What's there to have?"
"No, no, no," Tony said with an outstretched finger. He wagged it in Max's face. "The underage girl is not drinking."
Max pushed Tony back into the spot on the floor he'd claimed and grabbed the bottle of vodka from Natasha. "The underage girl has the metabolism of a nuclear warhead."
Natasha raised an eyebrow but said nothing, even when Clint nudged her and made a pass at taking the bottle back from Max. She was a strong believer in people proving themselves, whether it's needed or not.
"I don't think that's such a good idea," Steve said. "That stuff's strong."
Max stuck her tongue out at him. "So am I, Spanglepants." She uncapped the bottle and raised it to her lips, downing a good three shots before having to pull the bottle away.
Holy shit, Max thought in her head. She couldn't breath, she could barely think. Natasha took the bottle back, cackling.
"Good job," she said with a smile. Tasha patted Max on the back as she clutched at her throat. "Those guys don't even last a sip."
Max coughed, unable to respond. Thor handed her a bottle of soda they were using as a mixer. She decided she liked him the best in this moment.
"That was cruel, Tash," Bruce told her. Natasha said nothing.
"I thought it tasted fine," Max said. Her voice was raspy and high-pitched in places.
"Well, at least we know she can handle her alcohol," Barton said. He flipped a coin in the air. "Truth or dare, Max?"
As it turns out, Max was not good at handling her alcohol. She was rolling around on the floor no more than fifteen minutes later, completely smashed.
"Interesting," Banner said as he watched Max try to brain Thor's hair. "It seems like her genetically altered metabolism actually makes her drunker faster than any of us."
"Maximum, I believe you're pulling my hair out," Thor said. He reached up, trying to push Max's hands away.
"Shhhh," she replied. Max smushed one hand against Thor's face, determined to finish the braid. "Your hair is so tangled, He-Man. So, so, so, so tangled."
"Did she just call him He-Man?" Clint narrowed his eyes at Max.
"She is her adopter's adoptee, after all," Tony said. He was slightly more sober than Max at this point. Pretzels were miracle workers.
"Okay Max," Steve stood up and pulled Max off of Thor. She let out a high pitched squeal as he slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"Lemme down!" Max told him. She hiccuped. "This isn't very polite of you, Sneve- Steteve...Seve."
"Yeah, yeah." He sat back down and put her next to him. "Behave now, alright?"
Max nodded. "Mhmm..." She flopped over so her head was on his knee, her spine like jelly. "So I saw the guy today."
"What guy?" Steve asked.
"Do you have a boyfriend I should know about?" Tony said.
"Gross! No, the guy," Max repeated for emphasis. "He was scary, so scary. Just like in the diner."
Natasha leaned forwards. "Max, did you see the bomber from last month? From when you were with Darcy?"
Max nodded. "He's got sharks- I mean, he's a- he's a shark. He's got a shark..." Max gestured to her teeth. "Shark stuff. Smells gross."
"What are you talking-?" Tony started to say.
Natasha shushed him quickly and kept her eyes locked on Max. "What did you see, Max?"
Max giggled and reached out for Natasha's hair. "So pretty. Like blood."
"Focus, Max," said Natasha.
Mex recoiled, her neck pressed against Steve's leg. "Nothing, I didn't see anything. Nothing was there," she rambled. "I turned around but he wasn't there, like not at all. I saw him and he was gone. So gone. I wanted to ask him more questions. He was so scary, you know? All chomp, chomp, chomp." She made a gesture with her mouth. "But they know now. They know."
Everyone in the circle hand abandoned the party sensibilities now. Max was an unknown entity and for once, she was actually telling them something of note.
"Who does?" Steve asked. He propped Max up with his hands.
"They know now about what happened," Max said. She slurred her words considerably. "I didn't want to tell them, but I had to. I had to tell them about what they made me do, but now they know and I don't know who told, but it must've been someone. Someone told. Someone knew."
"What? What is it?" Natasha asked. She felt so close to the answer to Max's origins. Fury had assigned her to mine Max for information. "What do they know?"
Max scrunched up her entire face like a petulant toddler. She was about to open her mouth when the door swung open and Pepper entered, catching a glance at what was happening.
"What is going on here?" Pepper asked, her expression transforming from friendly to all-business. She crouched down to where Max was and smelled alcohol. "You got her drunk? She has training tomorrow morning!"
"Mom!" Max shouted, throwing her arms around Pepper's neck. "I missed you."
"We were just playing a game. We didn't know she had the alcohol tolerance of a small terrier," Tony explained.
Pepper stood with Max still clinging to her. "I'll deal with all of you later."
"Mom, mom, mom," Max said as Pepper carried her to bed. "I had so much fun. I wish Ella could have been there."
Pepper had begun to realize that Max thought she was someone else and it wasn't just a slip of the tongue. She didn't want to prod into Max's life and filed the name away for later. "Me too, Max."
"But everyone else is gone and that sucks," Max murmured into her pillow. "And it sucks 'cos it's my fault."
"Hmm?" Pepper asked. She pulled the sheets over Max.
"Cos I'm the reason they're dead."
I hope you all are well.