Chapter 14: Itsy Bitsy Spider Sorceress
The night I first met the Hulk was…was…well…not quite as cool as I'd hoped.
You see when the Hulk gets pissed he really loses himself into his anger, like seriously he does not hold back on anyone or anything. He just smashes and rips apart like it's nobody's business. And it did not help that time that he had that nightmare demon latched onto his chest, pumping him full of fear.
Looking back on the whole incident, it probably wasn't the best idea to trap myself in the room with him, even if that was accidental.
"No Bruce, ONLY HUUULK!"
"Holy shit" Via gulped from her spot on the wall, wincing as she heard the crunch of metal bending shape as the metal chair hitting somewhere close by.
But she had very little time to look at the spectacle as she saw another chair being flung at her direction.
With a cry she leapt up onto the high ceiling, thanking her lucky stars that she barely missed the large green fist that had grabbed her mid jump.
"Bruce! Bruce! It's me, Via. Remember? I'M YOUR FRIEND!" she called out only to squeak as he tried jumping up to snatch at her from the ceiling.
"NO BRUCE"
The whole room thudded and shook as the Hulk landed with a heavy thud onto the ground. One of the glass windows to the room cracked ominously as he leapt up to snatch at her and landed heavily again on the floor.
"Need to get out of here, need to get out" she muttered as she crawled over the ceiling, doing her best to steer closer to the exit.
However that plan was dashed as mass of green muscles and flesh suddenly blocked her path to the door.
"crap! JARVIS GET HELP!" she screamed as the hulk leapt up again, this time almost succeeding in grabbing at her ankle. But Via was quick to leap down into a roll on the ground where she hid behind an overturned desk.
"Shit-shit-shit-shit!"
She could hear the frantic scrambling from outside the room, accompanied by loud yells and frantic barks of Buddy.
"WE GOT A CODE GREEN! CODE GREEN!" she could vaguely hear Natasha's voice amidst the cacophony of shouts as Hulk's roars entered the mix.
Her ears ringing Via crawled quickly away from her hiding spot and behind another overturned desk before the Hulk could rip that to shreds.
Through the glass she could see Steve standing looking horrified as he caught sight of her through the glass, his shield held at the ready. At any other time, Via might have laughed at the sight of him with mussed up hair, a five o'clock, wearing a T-shirt and Pyjama pants ready for action but now all she could think of was:
"Thank god! CAP!" she shrieked the last word as a large green hand ripped the desk from behind her and threw it aside like it was a piece of paper.
Via gulped, shivering uncontrollably as felt the large mass of green panting and grunting heavily behind her back as the large shadow loomed over her.
Slowly she turned around.
The Hulk was glaring down at her, fists clenched, face contorted with rage, which only seemed to grow as the strange black leach like creature over his chest throbbed sickeningly.
"He-he…Hi…" Via feebly tried to smile, her body shaking so violently that she was sure she was making the whole floor vibrate under her as she practically willed herself not to piss her pants.
The Hulk glared down at her, lip curling as he stomped closer, nearly crushing her leg as she scuttled away like a backwards crab from him.
Somewhere behind the Hulk's back, she could hear the lab door opening and a voice whispering quietly.
"Okay on the count of three"
It was Tony's voice, and though he tried to hide it, Via could hear the smallest waver of uncertainty in his voice.
Hulk however did not seem to hear him, he just kept advancing on Via with the same snarl.
Despite her fear, Via could not help but wonder at this. She'd heard from the others that when the Hulk went crazy he'd go after anyone or anything, and that he'd keener senses than most. And yet there was something about the way he was looking at her-
Wait that's not anger…that's…
She breathed as she looked into those bright green irises, down to the strange black creature on his chest, and down to her still red glowing dreamcatcher on her neck.
"WAIT!" she called out, but too late. There was a large flash of light, and a crackle of energy as a bolt of lightening struck through the air.
It hit Hulk full on in the back, sending him flying straight into the glass wall, which shattered upon impact.
"What are you doing?" Via cried out as she felt a hand (which she recognized to be Clint's) drag her up to her feet.
"Getting you out of here. Now come on."
"No-wait! You don't understand-"
"KID!" she heard someone yelling as she wrenched her arm away from Clint's strong grip and dashed towards the Hulk's gigantic form that was laying on the ground.
He seemed motionless, but even as she knelt beside him she could see the rise and fall of his chest and the twitches in his face as he struggled between dreams and the living world. This wasn't anger, this was fear. The poor guy was experiencing his own worst nightmare.
The Web of Asibikaashi burned hotter than ever as she reached out to touch the throbbing black mass that was still embedded into his skin.
The sound of its sucking tentacle like gooey appendages almost made her want to wet herself again. Such a horrible sound…
No! Concentrate Via, concentrate! We got to get this thing off Bruce before it's too late.
She took in a deep breath, twirling her hands in front of the dreamcatcher on her chest, which now began to glow bright gold as she drew upon its energy. It was so bright, that it seemed to illuminate the room like a second sun even as she lowered her glowing hands down onto the creature of darkness and shadow.
A scream rent the air around her. A scream so blood curdling and spine chilling that nearly everyone else in the room stood still in shock and terror as it grew louder and louder in agony.
But Via did not let go. She just pressed down harder on the black mass beneath her, on which golden webs had begun spreading over the top of.
They spread and spread, until they hit the tendrils of black that were piercing into the Hulk's skin.
He cried out in surprise, eyes popping open wide and shocked, but Via still pressed on, not letting go even as she felt the green eyes turn on her and several voices yell indiscernibly behind her back.
"Come on Bruce…come on…fight it." she hissed ignoring the large hands that reached out to grab her shoulders, only for them to let go as the Hulk roared at them.
But for all his pain he did not lash out at Via, for when they made eye contact again, she could see the fear in them even as bits of the creature began to break apart like fragile charcoal.
She could hear the noise behind her begin to quiet down as she worked her magic through the dark creature. With each push of energy, she gave it, it's screams slowly but surely started to die down to gurgling pained splutters until finally, the last of its body crumbled away into ash.
There was silence as Via stared down at her hands. They were now resting upon one of the Hulk's massive green pectorals and shaking violently.
Finally…holy shit that was intense …
She sucked in a deep breath to soothe herself only to wince as a terrible smell hit her nose. It was almost like someone had burnt rotten eggs and hair together in a fire. She looked down at her hands. They were very red but not burnt too badly. At worst she'd have to just keep her hands in a bucket of ice cold water for a while.
"Shit" she breathed as she saw the corners of her vision beginning to turn black, unaware of the large green hand resting gently over her back or the loud yell:
"KID!"
Stephen Strange stared at his cellphone for a good full minute, eyes burning with quiet rage.
"You're quite sure?" he spoke into the loudspeaker, his eyes shutting as the voice of Peter Percival on the other end said:
"Yes…we're sure… Billy Hope was definitely murdered by Master Mordo."
Stephen's face fell into his scarred hand.
This was terrible. It was beyond anything he could have imagined, and he could imagine quite a lot.
"I'm sorry Doctor Strange. I know it's a lot to take in given everything that's happened." Percival sighed on his end sounding about as shaken as he felt "Truth be told I still have trouble believing it's true-"
"That makes two of us" Stephen muttered darkly. "But why? Why would he do something like this? What could he possibly gain from killing Pangborn or Hope? It doesn't make any sense"
"I don't know." Percival grunted tiredly "Or at least, I don't know why he'd kill Pangborn. He might've left the Order, but he wasn't a threat of any kind. As for Billy Hope there's only one reason that could possibly make sense-"
"Olivia" Stephen cut across him. "He must've heard about the arrest and decided to take matters into his own hands"
"To be fair though, had someone like that abused my daughter I'd probably feel just as angry" Percival admitted bitterly.
"Olivia wasn't his daughter" Stephen clipped, his jaw tensing. "He might have been ready to apply for her adoption, but it still doesn't change the fact that he still left her out in the cold"
Percival sighed again on the other end.
"Maybe, but that doesn't mean he still doesn't care for her. Truth be told I'm surprised he hasn't tried to reach out to her yet. Try to sway her to join him in exile. If he really wanted to turn against us wouldn't he want to gain other followers to turn the tides."
"Not unless he wants to wait in the shadows" Stephen rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
He'd only known Mordo for a brief amount of time, but from what he had seen, the man was more of a lone wolf. Even when living with others at Kamar-Taj he had been distant save to those few he was fond of…
Stephen's face darkened as a thought flashed over his mind's eye.
It was of Via that morning, her face looking disturbed by something as she looked down at her phone. She had quickly turned it off as soon as she had made eye contact with him, doing her best to smile it off before she left through the sling ring portal.
"Doctor Strange?" Percival's voice wafted into his ears.
"Sorry Percival, but I'll have to call you back. Something's come up. I'll speak to you again in the morning" Stephen's jaw clenched even as he hung up on the master on the other end.
"The talk didn't go so well?"
He looked up and saw Wong standing in the doorway, in a dark blue dressing gown and looking grim, a book under his arm.
"It was Mordo who killed Hope in prison" Stephen spat rubbing his temples as he tried to soothe his temper.
"And?" Wong quirked a brow.
"And…and I think he might be trying to contact Olivia"
Wong's face paled to the same colour of the pages of his book.
"That's impossible. Nobody has her contact details save you or I and the Avengers."
"I know, and that's what has me worried" Stephen pressed his fingers together "But even if he has contacted her I don't think she knows about his involvement in the murders. If she did she'd not be this calm"
"No. She'd be heartbroken." Wong stated bluntly, eyes narrowing "Are you going to tell her then?"
"…not yet" Stephen murmured softly "She's been through a lot recently, she needs a break from all the drama and hurt. Besides we don't know what Mordo is planning and given how reckless she's been recently she might try to confront him and who knows how that's going to turn out"
"Whilst I agree with your decision there's no doubt she'll be angry at you for hiding the truth." Wong countered swiftly.
"Maybe. But I'd rather her be safe and angry, than be hurt or worse by a man who's falling from the deep end" Stephen looked up at Wong, his light blue eyes stern.
Wong's lips pursed into a thin line.
"Very well. But we must tell her at some point, before some Hydra agent tries to."
"I still can't get over how it got in-"
"Forget how it got in, what the hell was that thing?"
"Steve is right. Even I haven't seen such a creature before and I've been on adventures over all nine realms"
"And hopefully we won't have to again."
"Yeah because we have such great luck like that"
"Shh-keep it down! She's waking up."
When Via opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a white ceiling above her head.
A white ceiling and a blur of a face as it slowly sidled into view. It was a pale face with halo of messy red curls
"Morning Sleeping beauty"
"Nat? What…how… Where am I? Bruce-the-the Hulk-"
"Shh take it easy. You've been out cold for a while" Natasha Romanoff smiled gently as she carefully helped the teen sit up, her entire body shaking uncontrollably as she looked around herself.
She appeared to be on a couch in the Tower's common room area with a rather thick throw blanket draped over her body. Around her stood Thor, Steve, Natasha, Clint and a very frazzled looking Pepper who was quickly striding up to her with a glass of water in her hands.
"Here, take this, it'll help you feel better" She handed the glass to Natasha who helped tip the water down the younger girl's parched throat.
She stopped to cough roughly vaguely aware of something wet nudging one of her hands.
"hey Bud" she whispered as the large hound huffed, plonking its head down over her thighs, staring worriedly up at her.
He wasn't the only one looking concerned. Half the room let loose a tense breath they'd been collectively holding together.
Indeed, Steve actually sat down in a chair and sighed heavily into his knees.
Now that Via looked closely at him, he seemed to still be in his sleep clothes, as was everyone else, and was that the rising sun she could see peeking over the horizon out the window?
She felt her heart sink in her chest from guilt.
"I'm so sorry" she gulped not daring to meet any of their eyes. "I've put you guys through hell again. This time under your own roof-"
"It wasn't your fault kid. At least not this time" Clint smirked as he came around to seat himself on the sofa by her feet. "Though it probably wasn't the smartest idea to trap yourself in the same room with an angry Hulk"
"Yeah…that was pretty dumb" Via scratched her head awkwardly. "How is Bruce? Is he still-"
"No, he transformed back shortly after you destroyed…that thing whatever it was" Steve grimaced darkly.
"It was a nightmare" she explained quickly.
"If by nightmare you mean the sick twisted lovechild of Alien and a giant leech then yeah I suppose it was." Clint snorted but Via shook her head.
"No. I mean nightmare as in a Nightmare Demon. An actual creature of darkness from the dream dimension that feasts on fear and leeches your soul from you bit by bit till there's nothing left but an empty shell" Via ran a hand through her now very tangled curls as she remembered the horrible screeching sounds echoing through her ears.
"You mean like a mardröm?" Thor frowned folding his arms.
"Yeah…Wait you know about them?" She looked up at the thunder god who nodded solemnly.
"I now of them. They used to be more prominent a threat when my father was still a youth, but then their numbers began to dwindle after the first war with the Dark Elves. In Asgard they're now more of a bedtime story, used to scare children into good behaviour."
"So what they're like the bogeyman or something?" Clint rolled his eyes.
"You laugh but bogeymen are real." Via narrowed her own gaze upon him dangerously "they're nightmare demons with more sentience than the others. Sometimes they possess the bodies of the people whose souls they've fed on and then they feed on actual flesh. But there hasn't been an actual bogeyman possession in years, at least not on American soil. According to the Order's records the last Bogeyman was dealt with during the Great Depression when the Ancient One sealed them in the Dream Dimension with the other nightmares-"
She paused to run a hand through her hair, swearing softly under her breath.
"Damn…of course…Should've known-"
"What? What's wrong?" Natasha frowned suspiciously as Via sighed.
When she spoke, her voice was slightly strained.
"The Ancient One died a few weeks ago, here in New York. If the spell to keep the demons out was cast by her then-"
"Then when she died whatever magic she might have used might have vanished with her" Thor finished gravely.
"Unless she bound the spell to a relic. But otherwise yeah…all her magic would come undone when she died…SHIT!" Via groaned into her hands "Shit-shit-shit! Why didn't I think of this before?"
"Uh, I don't know maybe because you've had a rough few weeks?" a new voice entered the room.
Via looked up as Tony loomed over from behind the sofa in a T-shirt and boxers, his eyes worn out with dark circles under them.
"Bruce is asleep. Gave him a mild horse tranquilizer in his tea to help him sleep it off. Don't worry Pepper, he asked me to do it." The billionaire added when his girlfriend's eyes widened in worry.
"So…that was a demon huh? Any idea who sent it so I can personally deliver a goodie basket of nuclear missiles to their face?" he looked at the room at large.
"We were just asking Vee that" Natasha explained calmly, though her eyes were hardened like steel "She was saying there might be a chance that an old spell has deteriorated and is now letting demons back onto our side here."
"From what I've read in reports most of the spell the Ancient One cast is still mostly intact, it just has a few cracks in it. It's either that or someone deliberately used dark magic to summon a demon. I can't be sure. I mean, if the demon still were here I might've been able to tell but because I destroyed it…Sorry…" Via's voice trailed away, guilt swelling in her gut.
"Don't be sorry." Clint's smirk softened consolingly as he gently squeezed one of her feet. "If you hadn't done anything the Other Guy might've done a lot worse than just throw a tantrum."
"Clint's right." Thor nodded "though, why were you in that room to begin with? We thought you'd gone to bed long after the movie?"
"I did try to" Via scowled grumpily as she took another sip of cold water "Honestly I did. But I just couldn't get to sleep. Then Buddy heard Bruce clanging around and he was set off, then this thing around my neck started glowing-" She pointed to the small blue and gold dreamcatcher around her neck that was faintly humming and glowing as it began absorbing the rays of the rising sun.
"-So I went to see what the problem was and hey presto I found Bruce, Hulking out in the lab with that thing on his chest!" she finished her story with a grumble. God her head was now starting to throb.
She hadn't used that much mystic energy in a long while. Even at the Hydra base she'd not actually used much magic at all. But that nightmare just took all she had from her. It had absorbed so much of Bruce's (and the Hulk's) fear that at one point she thought the Web of Asibikaashi would not work.
Well thank god it did because none of us would be here now…
She blinked, the light outside the windows now blurring slightly as she let herself glaze out and bask in its light.
Seeing her dazed expression, Tony reached down to ruffle her curls.
"Come on Mission Impossible. Get back to sleep. You need it."
Via didn't need telling twice. She was out like a light as soon as her head touched the cushion beneath her.
As soon as they heard the soft piggy snores filling the room, Steve looked up at Tony tiredly.
"How is Bruce really?"
"Not good" Tony murmured rubbing his own tired eyes. "Nearly had to break down his door to even speak to him and even then, he shut himself up like a clam"
"Were his bags packed?" Natasha frowned, her fingers absentmindedly stroking their way through Via's curls in soothing fashion as the girl shifted where she lay.
"Halfway. Don't worry. I put everything back when he hit the hay. He isn't going anywhere anytime soon."
"Good." Steve nodded "It's bad enough he got targeted here, if it had happened to him out on the run…"
His voice trailed away, but no one needed him to finish the sentence.
"Does he remember what happened? How the creature got on him?" Thor asked stroking his beard.
"Only that he started feeling anxious just before we had dinner and he started feeling worse after that. From what he said, he seems to have blacked out just before he started transforming." Tony leaned against the back of the sofa. "but then he forced himself to watch the security feed and now he's guilt tripping himself."
There was a collective sigh from everyone in the room.
"Hey, come on" Steve scowled at all of them as he stood to his feet. "We all knew what we were signing up for when we chose to come live here. We all knew there'd be some growing pains and adjustments, and we're just going to have to learn how to deal with it."
"Capsicle's right. And speaking of dealing with stuff, who needs coffee, I know I do." Tony grunted as he made his way towards the coffee machine behind the nearby bar.
"Yeah a coffee sounds good" Clint groaned as he trudged after the man of iron slowly like a sleepy zombie much to the amusement of his fellow Avengers.
"Still no vord from the bosses?"
Cornelius Craven scowled sidelong at his brother as he put his keys into the car ignition.
It had been several days since the Avengers had rescued that blasted girl, and there had been no orders of pursuit from either Hydra or their new employer.
Well no surprise there. Hydra had suffered a huge blow now that one of their major bases had taken a hit. It would be a while till they dared make a move anywhere in North America, especially with Tony Stark's infernal Damage Control keeping watch over every single city in the country.
Yet their new employer, that strange woman, had also not made her move. She wasn't Hydra, he knew that much, and yet…
"Brother?"
"hmm?" Cornelius looked to his brother Sergei, who was frowning worriedly from behind his new sunglasses.
"I said, that vwoman still hasn't made her move. Do you think-"
"No" Cornelius snorted over his brother "She hasn't been spooked. She's probably using Hydra's movements as a distraction while she makes her moves in the shadows. Oh, speak of the devil"
He looked down to his phone and smirked as he recognized the number.
"Hello mam, we were just talking about you" he spoke as he switched the call to loudspeaker.
"Good things I hope" A woman's voice spoke sweetly through the receiver, though he could hear the derisive ice in her tones. "I have another errand for you both, one which I think you might enjoy. It might start out as long and tedious but the results are well worth the effort."
"We're listening." Cornelius grinned to his brother, who smirked back.
Finally things were starting to pick up for them.
"Wait, hold up a minute? You want me to come with you for what?" Via frowned up at Natasha and Pepper from where she sat at the kitchen island. It was one in the afternoon, she'd just woken up from her second power nap after the whole Code Green Fiasco (as Tony so elegantly put it) when the two only other women in the Avengers tower had cornered her at her very late solitary brunch to ask her a very important question.
"A girl's day out. We go out shopping for clothes and junk. Maybe go to a salon get pampered. You know, girl stuff. I took this weekend off, so I could go shopping for the conference next week anyway, so I might as well have some company." Pepper shrugged as she nonchalantly chewed a raw carrot stick dipped in hummus.
"Right…and the reason for this is…" Via's eyebrows rose over her piece of toast.
"To chill out and relax." Natasha took a sip of coffee. "And get away from the guys for a bit, before Tony drags us into another Team Building exercise again"
"Do you think he still wants to go ahead with that plan? I mean, with Bruce hiding out in his room and all" Via looked worriedly at the doorway.
Aside from Tony's early morning report, she'd not seen hide nor hair of the scientist at all. Even when she'd quietly passed his doorway on her way to the kitchens his door had been locked, though she could hear the quiet padding of feet on the other side.
"Just give him time…" Pepper assured her gently "It's not easy for him opening up to new people about the Other Guy. He just doesn't want to risk hurting you again because he's mad at himself."
"But he shouldn't be mad at himself" Via huffed moodily through a mouthful of toast "It's that nightmare's fault he was feeling like that not his own."
"We know." Natasha nodded grimly "And so does he, but he still needs time to cool down and collect himself. From what you said those things have probably done quite a number on his brain. A little bit of down time might do him some good. As it would with you"
"I suppose" Via grumbled.
"I don't think I've ever seen a girl so enthusiastic about shopping" Pepper smirked and Via flushed pink with embarrassment.
"Sorry. Its' not like I don't want to go, it's just…I don't know. I guess I'm still just worried about what happened. This nightmare didn't just get in here and pick Bruce by accident also…"
Via sighed rubbing her forehead. This weekend was not at all as relaxing as she had thought.
She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Natasha smirking down at her gently.
"Come on. Let's get a move on. Besides Tony and the boys are here, they'll look after him."
"I suppose. But won't it be dangerous-"
"Don't worry, Clint's coming along and then my private security will be there watching us from a distance in case anything should happen. That and we've also got Jarvis and Aura keeping an eye on us" Pepper pointed to Via's phone.
"I suppose" Via nodded quietly, quickly covering up the belch that threatened to escape her.
"Oh what the heck! Why not! I'll just make sure Buddy's taken care of before we go out"
"It's okay. We've got your dog covered Mission Impossible"
The three of them all turned their heads to see Tony walking in, covered in sweat and dust, holding a screwdriver in his hand.
"Once Steve and I finish repairing the lab, we'll take your beast to the park." He said as he gave Pepper a quick peck on the cheek. "And by we, I mean Steve, Thor, Sam and Bruce."
"You sure that's a good idea right now?" Natasha frowned but Tony waved her off.
"Yeah, sure as long as we go somewhere quiet. It might take a little convincing but we'll get him on board"
"Who knows, maybe a bit of fresh air might do him some good." Via shrugged in agreement and Tony quirked a brow at her.
"Via Summers agreeing with me? Has the sky turned purple or something?" he pretended to look outside for signs of the non-existent conditions.
"You do know you'll have to pick up dog crap if you do walk Buddy right?" She giggled, the sound mingling with Pepper and Natasha's laughs as the Billionaire scowled once more.
"And with that lovely image in mind normality has been restored"
So that's how I ended up on a shopping trip with two of the most powerful women in the world. One a smart CEO of a massive company and the other a top assassin. Then there was Clint, another top assassin (but not a woman), sticking close to us under the disguise of our beast of burden (though we really did use him like a pack mule).
At that point in time, the only time I'd been shopping had been with Stephen. Back then we'd only gone for the essentials as we were prepping for life at the Sanctum.
Ha-ha! I can still remember his awkwardness at the underwear store. HA! Priceless.
Needless to say I thought it would be awkward having Clint tagging along for the ride, only to find to my pleasant surprise he was actually quite on board for the whole operation.
And we're not just talking about the shopping. He even came in with us when we went to the freaking beauty salon!
Most guy's I've met in my life would've been awkward about sitting in a beauty parlour (apart from Tony, who's used to having some stylist prep him for his big events) but Clint was as cool as a cucumber as he sat back and got pampered like a pooch. Heck! I'm a girl and I still feel uncomfortable whenever I get a makeover.
My beauty routine at home is usually, brush hair, wash face, a thin layer of lip balm and maybe spritz on some scented deodorant.
Apart from that I'm not too fussed really. Unlike some people…
"Ah that's better" Clint smirked as he looked down at his nails. Normally he'd just trim the damn things off himself, but it was nice to see them all clean as a whistle and nicely trimmed down to size. It didn't hurt that Pepper was paying for all their sessions.
He looked around to see said CEO chatting with Natasha from where they were sitting and getting their hair washed by two lady hairdressers.
Via on the other hand was sitting near him, getting the finishing touches on her nails. Yet even as he watched her with the beautician, he could see her discomfort at being in such a position.
Probably the first time she's ever been in one of these places. Not that she really needs it.
He mused as he watched the young girl. She wore a pair of dark red converse with a blue denim shirt and jeans. Her blonde curls were loose framing her tense, forced smile as she nodded and thanked the beautician in front of her as the job was finished.
"So which colour did you get?" he asked as he walked over to stand next to her chair.
"Went with the gold. The pink was…not really my thing" Via blushed as she showed him her shimmering pale gold nails.
"Yeah. Definitely better than the pink" Clint nodded. "and what about the hair? Have you decided what you're gonna do about that? Nat and Pepper are already getting theirs washed"
"Yeah I saw…I dunno it's just…I've never let anyone cut my hair before, let alone style it" she murmured blushing sheepishly "Anyway when I cut my hair last year I used a pair of shears and ended up looking like half a blonde spoodle"
She grimaced as the memory washed over her. It felt like yesterday she had been dragged off the street and into Khamar-tarj by the Ancient One and had her head scrubbed half raw by a healer.
"Don't worry kid. Unlike you these guys are professionals, plus I doubt they'll shear you down like a sheep. Baa!" Clint fake-bleated like a sheep and was pleased to see her snort with laughter despite herself. "Tell you what if you're really worried, just get a wash, dry and trim and see how that goes."
"I suppose" Via shrugged as they both were led over to the back of the parlour where several women were getting their hair washed and scrubbed by stylists in the sinks.
Just outside the parlour doors, Via noticed a couple of suited security guards from Pepper's detail looking over their shoulders to keep watch on what was going on inside.
The guards had been vigilant in their duties to keep Pepper and her safe but had kept their distance seeing as the Black Widow and Hawkeye were both tagging along.
But what really had Via's heart sinking in its chest was the sight of the heavily made up fake blonde woman she was forced to sit next to as she leaned her head back into the hair washing basin.
"Oh crap" Natasha gulped as she and Pepper leaned over to see where their youngest friend had been seated.
But it was too late to intervene as Sophie Castor rolled her eyes angrily.
"Good grief, I was wondering what smelt bad in here. Now I know." she muttered throwing a very dirty look at Via who smirked.
"Says the woman who smells like she's shacked up with a flower patch."
And indeed, Via was not a fan of the very strong perfume that wafted into her nose from the woman beside her.
God, why do women do such stupid crap to themselves? I mean, it's one thing to want to smell nice but Jesus, don't kill my nose!
She shut her eyes as she tried to block the smell, choosing instead to focus on the feel of the hands washing through her locks.
Her ears however were not quite co-operative and pricked up when the catty woman beside her sneered again.
"And I see you're going with the double denim. Che! How cute. Pity that it went out of style ages ago"
"So did acting like a bitch. Now if you don't mind I have better things to do than associate with the likes of you so unless you want another cake in the face, piss off." Via sighed, keeping her eyes shut.
She really wasn't in the mood to deal with Sophie Caster, or anyone else really. She had come out to relax and shop with friends and she was not going to let some prissy try hard bimbo try to spoil it for her.
She was spared any further confrontation when the seething older woman was quickly distracted by a stylist who had brought her colouring foil and tools on a tray.
"Wow you really know how to pick your fights don't you?" Clint snorted from his spot beside her and Via shrugged.
"No. I just don't have time for idiots" she muttered relaxing as conditioner was rinsed out of her hair by long fingers.
Soon after she was quickly hurried to a soft black leather salon chair right next to Pepper who glanced at her worriedly.
"Are you okay? Did she try anything again?"
"No, I put a cork in her before she could get very far" Via sighed as she let the stylist clipp the dark grey hairdressing robe in place around her neck.
"Now just you wait right here while I go get Cassidy" they said before swiftly dashing off to one of the back rooms.
"Alright" Via smiled, though it came up short as she caught sight of the sneering face of Sophie reflected in her mirror. She appeared to be looking over her shoulder at her, sniggering nastily at the woman colouring her hair, who seemed to be hanging on her every word. She stopped when she met Via's eye in the mirror, smirking as the younger girl forced herself to look away.
It wasn't easy. Inside her head both her own inner sorceress and Asmund were yelling at her to turn the nasty woman into a toad (or worse) and squash her underfoot. By god she deserved that fate for all those horrible words she'd said about her mother.
But no, Via shook herself, she had to be mature about this. She'd already screwed up once at Tony's party, and had only gotten away with it because he'd liked her spunk. If she lost her cool here she'd probably get in big trouble and embarrass herself even more.
As if sensing her discomfort, Pepper reached and placed a calm soothing hand on the girl's arm.
"I know it seems unfair, but people like Sophie come and go. Yes they may talk and they might try to tear you down, but they only do it because they themselves feel inadequate. The only reason Sophie feels inadequate is because she destroys herself trying to make herself look like someone else, rather than embracing what she really looks like."
"I know. Believe me I know that feeling" Via pouted irritably "but whether you feel insecure or not it doesn't excuse behaving like an ass."
"Hear, hear" Natasha grunted from Pepper's other side, looking up from the magazine she'd just been perusing.
Pepper sighed softly, only to be interrupted by the sound of clacking shoes on the floor.
"Ah Cassidy" she smiled wide as she greeted the newcomer.
Via turned around to see a very tall slender man wearing a black t-shirt and skinny black jeans with sharp looking trainers. His hair dark and curly and stylishly messy falling in the way of his dark eyes which were lined with black. When he spoke, Via was surprised to by the loud booming voice that escaped his smiling mouth as he leant down to hug and kiss Pepper on both cheeks.
"Pepper, love it's been too long. Where 'ave you been? 'ow're you 'oldin' up? Oh better still 'ow's the boyfriend holdin' up? I saw 'is accident on the news. Looked pretty nasty-"
Via blinked as she digested the tirade of words slamming into her ears. Listening to Cassidy was like listening to a typewriter that was wrapped with tin foil and then kicked down some stairs.
She was amazed that Pepper could even understand half the words tumbling out, or even how she could smile and respond so calmly.
"Oh, Tony's fine Cass. A little bruised and battered, and moping and groaning but he's fine and-"
Cass…
Via felt her heart sting at the nickname. She wondered where Cassian was now? Was he alright? Was he still angry with her about his father's-
She was dragged from her depressing thoughts as Cassidy grinned and shook Natasha's hand.
"Natalie, always a pleasure."
Oh yeah, that's right. Nat's using a cover name today
Via remembered quickly flashing what she hoped was a friendly smile as Cassidy turned to face her.
"And 'o's this lovely lady 'ere. One of your nieces Pep?"
"I wish, but unfortunately she is not." Pepper smiled as she gestured to a now blushing Via "Cass, this is Via Summers, Tony's new intern. Via this is Cassidy Barker a very good friend of mine and one of the best hairdresser's in New York"
"Nice to meet you Cassidy." Via shook Cassidy's hand.
"Nice to meet you too, Via. Now Pep, what can me and my girl's do for you today? Redo your bangs, maybe add some curls"
"I'm alright Cass, Nat and I just need trims. I was wondering if you could look after Via here. She's been working very hard for the past few weeks, so she deserves a treat."
"O-oh it's okay Pepper I'm fine really. I-I'll just g-get a trim" Via spluttered feeling her cheeks going redder than ever.
Cassidy smiled knowingly at her in her reflection, staring very hard at her stubborn curls that were already fighting back against the damp to return to their normal chaotic state.
"Hmm, a stubborn one, are you? Oh well, I like a challenge."
"Go easy on her Cass, it's her first time" Natalie smirked as she turned a page in her magazine.
"Don't worry, I'll be gentle. Besides I don't need to do much, she's got all the tools she just needs the manual. Unlike some people" he added, rolling his eyes as loud laughter hit their ears.
Via didn't need to turn around to know where the noise was coming from and nearly sank down in her chair as she heard Sophie's snort.
"Oh poor Cassidy, have they got you on babysitting duty? How sad."
Cassidy chuckled, a very forced hollow sound from a smile that didn't reach his eyes at all as he turned back to Via's reflection.
"How sad my foot. I feel sorry for the poor sod that has to babysit her arse today"
"What arse? She's flat like a board both physically and mentally." Via rolled her eyes before she could stop herself.
"That's terrible", Pepper chided only to burst into a fit of giggles, despite herself. Natasha on the other hand did not bother holding back the amused snort that escaped her as Via shrugged:
"I know, but truth hurts"
"Oh I know I'm going to like you." Cassidy chuckled as he began to clip up bunches of her hair. "Now I'm thinking…layers"
So there I was, getting my first proper hair cut in a beauty salon. I must admit it wasn't as bad as I first thought. True nowadays I rarely go into a salon because I can just use a spell to change my hairstyle, but it's still sometimes fun to go with friends and enjoy myself.
Anyways back onto my log. As you can see, I was (for the most part) having a blast. It was the first time in weeks I was able to relax and not look over my shoulder. True I was with two avengers and had a squad of bodyguards tailing my every move but it wasn't too bad.
Truth be told I was more worried about what was going on at the tower with Bruce…
"Bruce"
Bruce Banner sighed as he heard a knock at his door. He looked at his half-filled suitcase on his bed, already occupied by roughly thrown bundles of clothes, books and the necessities.
He knew it was only a matter of time before someone came in again trying to convince him to stay. He'd said so from day one that it was a mistake to let him live at the tower. It was only a matter of time before he hulked out and ended up hurting anyone.
True he hadn't really hurt anyone last night, and half the stuff in the lab was easy to replace, but it had been a very close call.
I almost could've killed a kid.
He shivered in disgust at himself.
I almost could've killed a kid, all because I couldn't keep in control.
He didn't care if Tony had told him it was a magical monster that was responsible and not himself. If anything, that only made him even more frightened of staying. Whoever sent that creature knew he was vulnerable and had targeted him specifically, knowing what he was capable of in such a state.
They'd all be safer if he wasn't-
There was another knock at the door.
"Bruce? Can I come in?" he heard Steve's voice through the door.
Oh great now what?
Bruce rolled his eyes to himself as he said:
"Yeah sure, why not. It's not like I could do any more damage" he mumbled the last bit to himself as Steve stepped through the door.
"Hey, you doing alright? We've got lunch on the tabl-" he stopped short as he caught sight of the suitcase on the bed.
"Still thinking about leaving huh?" he sighed as Bruce walked over to his closet and began rifling through the doors for underwear.
"No I'm not thinking. I am leaving and it's for the best" Bruce avoided the captain's eyes ashamedly.
"For the best?" Steve frowned. "Bruce you can't just run-"
"Oh yes I can. You saw what happened last night Steve. I almost could've killed you all. Heck I nearly did kill the kid. I can't let it happen again-"
"Then let us help you." Steve said.
There was a small jingle of metal and soft pants and a large flump on the bed.
Both grown men turned to see the four-legged form of Buddy leap onto the bed and start digging through Bruce's suitcase.
"Hey! Stop that you-" Bruce lunged forwards but already the large canine had emptied the suitcase and grabbed onto his favourite purple shirt and bound into the corridor.
"Damn that dog! Get back here!" Bruce ran out the door after the dog, Steve following hot on his tail laughing loudly.
"I suppose you think this is funny" Bruce snapped waspishly as they followed the dog around a corner.
"Well he did get you out of the room" Steve chuckled as they reached the common room where they found Tony and Thor standing with Bruce's shirt and patting its head approvingly.
"Good boy, you got tough guy out of the room. Hey Bruce, you feeling any better?"
"You sent a dog to steal my shirt?" Bruce stared incredulously at the Billionaire and Thunder God who smiled widely.
"Of course not. We just told him to find you and fetch you. The shirt was his idea"
"Except dogs usually aren't smart enough to think so arbitrarily" Steve folded his arms, smirking despite himself.
"And how would you know that Capsicle? Have you ever had a dog before? Are you a dog whisperer?" Tony rolled his eyes as said dog barked loudly. "There see he knows what I'm talking about"
"While it's true some breeds of dogs can be more intelligent than others in different ways, I have to agree with Steve. This animal is way too intelligent to be normal. I swear sometimes when we talk I feel as if he knows exactly what we're saying" and even as he said this Bruce locked eyes with the canine.
It almost seemed as if it were staring straight down into his soul.
"Well intelligence aside, he did his job well in retrieving you Banner" Thor scratched the dogs head.
"Retrieve? What am I, a ball?" Bruce said dryly as he reached to take his shirt from Tony.
"No. But speaking of balls-"
"and apparently your lack thereof." Steve muttered with a smirk.
Tony blanched, Thor snorted, and Bruce's eyebrows rose in astonishment.
"What? You think you're the only one to make a joke around here? I may be over ninety years old, but I'm not dead." Steve shook his head in exasperation.
"True, true." Tony conceded though he still looked a little disturbed by the captain's smug smirk.
"All jokes aside," Thor chuckled thudding Steve heavily on the back so that he actually jerked forward "Now that you are out of your room Banner, perhaps you might join us in a walk out to the park."
Bruce stared at his three fellow Avengers.
He'd almost beaten half of them up the night before as the Hulk, had shut them out for most of the day, and now they were resorting to using a dog to lure him outside his room, joke with him and invite him to take a walk…to a park…as if nothing was wrong…at all?
In the back of his head he could hear a little voice, that sounded eerily like Via's saying:
These people are so weird.
Sorry for the delay guys, Wong just popped in to remind me to take the trash out. He and Stephen are both going to Kamar Taj to teach some new novices so I'm going to oversee the Sanctum while they're out.
It's not too bad. True I'm not a full fledged master but with the amount of enchantments we've placed around the sanctum, everything should be fine and I can easily contact them if something or someone unexpected comes a calling.
And speaking of unexpected meetings…
Peter Parker sighed as he trailed around the shop after the back of a very attractive brunette woman and her husband, his arms full of shopping bags. It was his Aunt May's birthday, and today his Uncle Ben thought it might be nice to treat her to a day trip out to Manhattan.
Normally Peter wouldn't have minded. He loved his Aunt May to death and was glad to see her looking so happy. And yet…
"Peter are you sure you're good carrying all this? Isn't it heavy?" Aunt May frowned concernedly as she looked back at him from the cashier.
"Yeah, yeah absolutely. But-but I'm fine really." Peter spluttered quickly, forcing a smile on his face.
Meanwhile in his arms, the bags that were filled to bursting, bags that should have weighed him down like an anchor to the sea floor, felt as light as feathers. Indeed, if it weren't for their cumbersome size and his skinny build, he felt like he could lift double the weight.
And yet even his body wasn't as skinny as it used to be.
What once were scrawny noodles for arms and legs had gained tone and muscle mass, and his stomach, that was currently being revealed by his shirt riding up, now had at least four abs in it that certainly had not been there a few weeks ago.
As he passed a nearby window Peter looked at his jeans in his reflection, which once had been slightly baggy, but now were uncomfortably tight around…well everywhere.
If his Aunt and Uncle had suspected anything of his rapidly changing body, they said nothing, or rather thought it was just a part of a regular teenage growth spurt.
But Peter Parker knew better. This wasn't just a fluke of puberty. This was the fault of that damned radioactive spider that had bitten him that day at Oscorp. The one that had bitten him just after he'd met…
He felt his cheeks heat up a little at the memory of a head of blonde curls and a pair of bright blue eyes smiling at him.
Yeah…like she'd ever remember that meeting. She's a pretty girl who could have any guy she wants and I'm just a geek. A geek who can now bend doorknobs out of shape if I don't concentrate on what I'm doing.
He pouted as he followed his Aunt and Uncle out of the shop and towards the mall's largest and most fashionable department store.
He sighed, doing his best to make himself as small as possible as he caught sight of the incredibly stylish men, women and teenagers strolling around the store in their trendy expensive clothes. While his aunt and uncle both were both dressed in smart casual attire, he had gone more for comfort and practicality with his red and blue sweater and shrunken jeans and trainers.
He'd never felt so out of place in his life.
He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice he was on his own until he looked up from the polished floor.
"Aunt May? Uncle Ben?!" he looked around for his guardian's familiar faces, only to find his view blocked by a sea of women's clothes on hangars.
Great! Can't see them. Nice going Peter. Why couldn't that spider give me great tracking abili-
"Oof!" he winced as he walked straight into someone.
"Hey!" a feminine voice snapped only to mumble. "Oh…hi…"
If Peter thought his cheeks were red before, it was nothing compared to the magnificent shade of magenta over his skin as he caught sight of the head of blonde curls.
"V-Via hi!" he spluttered wishing he could vanish now into the floor. "S-Sorry I wasn't looking where I was going."
"Don't worry, neither was I" Via admitted flushing pink as she bent down to help him pick up a couple of bags that had fallen from his grip. It didn't help his blushing as he saw that her curls were nicely styled about her face or the way her slender curved behind was highlighted in her tight blue denim jeans as she bent down-
"I'm so sorry are these yours?"
"My Aunt's" Peter felt his ears burning red. "It's her birthday today so my Uncle and I are taking her shopping"
"And let me guess you're the designated beast of burden?" Via smiled.
"Something like that yeah" Peter grinned. "S-so, how've you been? How's the internship with Mister Stark going?"
"It's going alright, I suppose" she shrugged though she avoided his eyes as she coughed. "I'm actually here on a shopping trip with his girlfriend. She's got this big conference next week and wanted the company"
"You're with Pepper Potts. Here?" Peter's eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets. He'd thought she was too good to be true, now she was completely out of his league.
There's absolutely no way she'd ever want to go out with me, let alone be friends.
His depressing thoughts were interrupted by her sigh.
"Yeah, it's nice."
"You don't sound too enthusiastic" Peter frowned before he could stop himself.
Via chuckled. "Yeah well…don't get me wrong, hanging with Pepper-I-I mean Miss Potts is great and all. She's quite cool, it's just that…well it's been hectic"
"You mean with Mister Stark's car crash? It was all over the news" Peter explained and Via nodded.
"Yeah and it's been a rollercoaster let me tell you" she sighed again, quickly forcing a smile on her face as she looked back up at him.
"So your Aunt's birthday huh? You guys must be close"
"Yeah well…I kinda live with them actually. My parents aren't exactly uh…" Peter trailed off.
"Not there?" Via's smile softened gently. "Yeah me too."
"You're an orphan?" Peter wondered aloud. He'd not expected that. He'd expected her to belong to some rich, high class snobs that lived in a penthouse.
"Yeah, but I-I live with Doc-I mean my legal guardian so it's alright." Via coughed cheeks pink again.
"Doc?"
"He's a doctor. Or rather ex-doctor."
"That's cool. My Uncle's a science teacher" Peter found himself blurting out much to his inner chagrin.
"Wow, that must be awesome. Bet you ace all the science stuff at school huh?" Via winked.
"Well…yeah I guess. I mean I love science a lot and uh… And you? What's your favourite subject?" he coughed, cursing himself mentally.
Smooth move Peter. Smooth.
"History." Via smiled shyly, tucking a stray golden lock behind her ear. "I really like history. Ancient and Modern. I know, I sound like an absolute nerd huh?"
"What no-no-that's not nerdy at all. Why would that sound nerdy? You just like history and…and…" he trailed off as he looked down to his toes, feeling his ears burn like a furnace. Great now he made her feel embarrassed.
He was grateful when he heard a couple of voices call out:
"Hey! Vee? Via?"
"Peter! Peter are you still there?"
"I guess we're being summoned" Via smirked and despite himself Peter laughed.
"Summoned? What are we, Genies of the lamp?"
Now Via chuckled as well, the sound reverberating off the walls of his head. It was a nice sound.
"Olivia!"
"I'll be there in a sec" Via called rolling her eyes as she jerked her thumb over her shoulder.
"Well…I guess I gotta go. It was nice seeing you again Peter"
"Yeah, uh-huh, it was nice seeing you too" Peter nodded vigorously only to cry out as she began to walk away "Wait! Via!"
"Yes?" Via stopped, her big blue eyes blinking up at him. The effect was such that it made the butterflies in his stomach turn into raging dragons.
"I-I-I-Can we talk again? Like on facebook? Or-or something-I mean you don't have to if you don't want to-I-I just thought-"
"What? Oh yeah. Sure, why not. We're friends, aren't we?" Now it was Via's turn to turn scarlet.
"Yeah I guess so." Peter mumbled, the corners of his mouth twitching up in a nervous smile. His predicament wasn't helped when she gave him a full wide smile.
"Then I guess I'll talk with you later. Bye" and with that she quickly dashed behind a coat rail lined with long women's dresses.
"Bye" Peter called after her, though his word ended in a waver as his brain was overcome by his snarling inner voice.
"Can we talk again?" What are you, five? Just ask her out goddammit!
Ask her out? No way, she'd shoot me down in five seconds…besides she said we were friends.
Friends…Friendzoned…
"Real smooth Peter Parker, real smooth" Peter Parker sighed to himself as he walked through the isles of clothes and towards his concerned looking Aunt and Uncle, unaware of the girl on the other side of the floor also cursing herself mentally.
"We're friends aren't we?" Wow, real smooth genius. I can't believe I was that dumb.
Via groaned as she quietly meandered her way over to where Natasha was standing by the end of the long clothes isle.
"A friend of yours?" the Assassin folded her arms.
"Just a guy I met when I was walking around Oscorp." Via muttered, hoping against hope that she appeared aloof and cool headed. However unfortunately for her, her cheeks were still a deep shade of vermilion.
"Just a guy huh?" Natasha smirked "and?"
"And what?" Via gulped, blush deepening as she was led into what appeared to be a private dressing room reserved for VIP customers.
"Did he ask you out? Or did you ask him out? Which was it?"
"No we just agreed to chat? Why the hell are you so interested?"
"Who's interested in what?" A voice called out and Via and Natasha both turned to see Pepper peeking her head from around a curtain.
"Little Via here was talking to a guy just outside?"
"A guy huh? Was he cute?" Pepper smiled winking mischievously at Natasha. It had been a long time since she had last indulged in simple fun gossip.
"Like a Labrador puppy. Vee couldn't take her eyes off him."
"Oh yes I could." Via snapped waspishly, cursing her cheeks as her blush deepened if possible, even more as Nat pulled out her phone.
"I don't believe-You took a picture?" she scowled.
"Just as a precaution. Just in case he tried anything so that we could ID him but here-" The spy smirked as she showed Pepper the photo.
As soon as her eyes caught sight of the brunette head of hair and the youthful face, Pepper smiled.
"Hmm…a bit geeky but I can see why you like him."
"I don't like him, I mean I do because we're friends-but not in that way!" Via spluttered "Besides I doubt someone like him would ever want to go out with someone like me"
"Bullshit, the guy was drooling all over her like she was a tall drink of water" Natasha rolled her eyes adding under her breath "God I swear sometimes you're worse than Steve".
"Who's worse than Steve?" Clint poked his head through the door behind. "Oh by the way Vee, that's a nice little boyfriend you picked for yourself."
"Oh crap, not you too," Via facepalmed "he is NOT my boyfriend! I barely even know him for crying out loud!"
"But you'd like to know him, wouldn't you?" Clint dug her side with his elbow, only to wince as she accidentally stomped hard on his foot.
"Idiot" Natasha sighed.
Pepper just smiled, her heart clenching painfully as she quietly retreated behind the curtain again. Even though Via was embarrassed she was still far happier than she had been this morning. Heck it was the first time she'd ever seen her act her age. The change it had on her face was startling. No longer was she the stressed-out sorcerer's apprentice. Now she was just a girl, who liked a boy and didn't know what to do about it.
She's still just an innocent kid…
So why did Hydra want her so badly?
No! She shook her head out. No, she couldn't think about that now. She had a conference to prepare for and only one day to relax and enjoy herself and that would be what she'd do.
Still even as she joined in the teasing again, she couldn't shake off the horrible prickling feeling on the back of her neck that she was being watched.
And not just by her bodyguards.
So there I was, meeting Peter for the second time. Had I known what would've passed in later years I might have avoided that meeting altogether but…
*sigh* Never mind what's done is done I suppose. And truth be told, no I probably wouldn't change a thing about that meeting, or indeed any other meeting between us before…
Well…I guess you'll just have to wait and see huh?
Anyways while I was being mercilessly teased I remained completely unaware of the dangers still lurking in the background.
"I can't believe it." Sergei Craven muttered in disbelief from his spot on the department shop floor. He'd done well to conceal himself behind a few railings, which kept him out of eyesight from that damned Black Widow and her bird-brained colleague.
But that wasn't what had him rolling his eyes in disgust at his brother.
"She talks with super soldiers and gods on a daily basis and yet she blushes for this…little…geek?"
"Different strokes for different folks, Sergei" Cornelius Craven snorted as he pretended to examine a long trench coat on a hangar. "Though I don't see why this affects you so much?"
"It doesn't. It's just…it confuses me, iz all. That girl could have her pick of any guy, and this is the one she-It doesn't make any sense."
"It confuses me too. But we aren't here to critique her love life. We just need to keep an eye on her from a distance until our new friend gives us the say so."
"Speaking of distance, ve should leave soon. I see Stark's goons are still patrolling the floor and I don't think they'll appreciate our being here when they see uz."
"For once I agree with you" Cornelius nodded grimly as he caught sight of a suited man walking in their direction.
"Quickly, they've already spotted us. I told you not to wear that jacket-"
"By ze Gods vwould you stop vith the nagging! I svear your worse than mom."
They both dashed away, not noticing the face of a blonde woman half hidden in a corner smirking as she watched them run.
How quaint. They think just because two of them are Avengers they are safe enough to stroll around as bold as brass.
Her smirk only widened as she caught sight of the young blonde girl and her three chaperones exiting the change room, all joking and chatting. The blonde's cheeks were still a deep shade of pink even as she quickly scanned the room.
The woman's smirk vanished for a split second as her shrouded eyes met a pair of frowning bright blue orbs.
"Mom?" Via mouthed softly. But even as she blinked the blonde woman had disappeared.
"What's the matter Vee? Spotted your beau again?" Clint sniggered.
"No-no. I just thought…never mind it was nothing" she shook her head and scowled up at the archer "And what the hell's a beau?"
But even as Clint continued to tease her, her mind continued to whir uncontrollably.
There was no doubt about it, she could've sworn she'd just seen the living breathing face of her mother standing right in that corner.
But that couldn't be possible…could it?
Dun-Dun-DUUUN! and there we have it! chapter 14 is up. i figured i'd leave you with a long chapter to make up for my absence.
So Via's having a little break and she meets Peter Parker again. As its only been a couple of weeks since he got bitten by the spider, Peter still hasn't made much progress in becoming Spiderman. I figured though he'd still be starting to notice all its effects and he's currently in the mode of "what the hell do i do with myself" kind of panic. And who sent the nightmare demon to Bruce and what will he do next.
Speaking of our dear Avengers, I just saw Infinity War a week ago and OMG! OMFG! WTF! Like seriously i just...i can't believe the ending! (Spoiler alert) i can't believe they decimated half the goddamn cast, especially poor Peter and T'Challa because they've only just made their debuts (God i loved Black Panther, it was so awesome).
I mean i knew they'd kill off some characters and that half of them might come back because they're already going to be in movies after Avengers 4 but how could they just rip out my heart like that? Damn you Russo brothers, completely making me rethink some of my plots for Via's future (though technically i should also thank them because it's helped me fill in some plot holes i was trying to fix). I was also so sure the Soul Stone might've been in Wakanda and it wasn't!
Let me explain. Before Infinity war i thought the Soul Stone was in Wakanda because I thought that the heart shaped herb was growing from above the place where the soul stone was buried in the ground. I figured that would explain why T'Challa was able to connect with the souls of his father and ancestors when he ate the herb, not to mention it could've explained why Vibranium might have been so present in Wakanda (as i thought it might have been formed at the crash sight of the Soul Stone when it came down to earth). But it looks like that theory has bit the dust :( Dammit!
Anyways, sorry about the rant. truth be told i was quite happy with the movie as a whole but i'm still sorta mad as well because half my faves were destroyed by that clicking bloody giant grapefruit Thanos!
And on that note i will leave you guys to read. If you enjoyed please review, they give me strength to write amidst my hectic life.
Cheers
FuzzyBeta