Fix Me Chapter 6, a Thor + Lab Rats, 2012 Crossover fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters except the OC's.

un-beta'd

"This is stupid."

"It's not stupid," Tom says as he parks the car.

"Yeah," Marcus grumbles, "right."

Tom flicks the boy's nose and earns a growl in response.

"Honestly, I would've thought you'd be excited about getting out of the valley for a day or two but all I hear is complaining."

"I never even wanted to-"

Tom exits the vehicle, laughing as the door cuts the boy off. He can't help but grin and mime I can't hear you through the window. Marcus' sharp muffled words probably mean he's swearing and Tom doesn't keep the look of disapproval from his face. Marcus bares his teeth at him in annoyance because he knows they'll be having a discussion on the ride home about his choice of words.

Tom's beams when Marcus finally drags himself out of the car to stand next to him. Together they make their way through the outlet mall in search for new clothes and whatever else catches their eye. Marcus hunches in on himself after several people stop to stare at him. He still has to wear the bandages to cover the missing skin. The sling and leg brace are still in place to keep his broken limbs from flailing around. A few children point and whisper and it makes him so angry he almost doesn't hear Tom.

"-cus? Are you alright?"

He doesn't answer and Tom leaves it alone. Tom doesn't really know how to comfort him. He's still learning how to handle the boy. He sighs wondering if he should hire a professional for this. Maybe then he'd get all his own problems under wraps for good while Marcus is treated.

"I'm going to the restroom," Marcus says quietly.

He sighs in defeat not even bothering to point out that Marcus doesn't even use the restroom. He watches the boy follow the signs towards the nearest men's room before glaring at the people around him. They have the decency to scurry away without a backward glance.

Ten minutes go by and then twenty until Tom realizes Marcus probably went off to hide. He knows better than to seek him out- arguments were usually the result- and he decides to continue shopping. An hour later Tom is struggling under the weight of his heavy shopping bags. There's still no sight of Marcus and he knows he shouldn't worry but the gnawing twist in his stomach won't go away.

'Be patient,' he tells himself, 'A few more minutes won't hurt.'

Instead of panicking, he steps into a book store near the entrance they came in. He feels mild embarrassment when he asks a worker for help. He feels himself shake when he picks up a book called Positive Discipline for Single Parents. He quickly gathers a few more that sound promising before the need to escape the small bookstore becomes too much. He tries not to flush when the cashier quirks an eyebrow at his choice of reading material.

Tom can't help but breathe a sigh of relief once he has all his bags packed away in the trunk making sure to hide the books. The idea for a psychiatrist is looking more appealing even if it makes his skin crawl.

He straightens and sets off to find Marcus.

Tom searches half the mall before he finally hears Marcus' voice. He swears the boy sounds upset and maybe even amused? He makes his way closer, avoiding the crowds of people in his way to round the corner to a secluded walkway between two stores. Marcus is sitting on the ground, arm sling and knee brace in tatters, looking up at three teenagers towering over him. Something ugly snaps inside of him at the sight of Marcus being helpless.

His tone is icy when he asks, "What's going on here?"

He feels a small amount of pleasure when the three teenagers jump and stare at him in surprise. His scowl deepens when Marcus looks relieved.

"Do I need to repeat myself?"

The shortest of the three, a male with spiky hair, smiles awkwardly, "Um, w-we were just helping our friend, um, he fell."

"He's not our friend," the tallest male frowns, "Is he?"

"Of course, he is Adam," the female of the group hisses.

"But then why were we figh-"

He's interrupted by the smaller teenager's coughing fit and is steered away. Tom walks closer not bothering to listen to the three argue in whispers. His only focus is Marcus, who is beet red and shamed. He leans down to offer his hand and almost smiles when the boy accepts it and leans against him for support when he stands.

"Are you well?"

His free hand fists lightly when he sees the watery sheen in the boys eye. He's furious because Marcus can't cry and this is the closest he'll come to shedding tears. Marcus nods his head pointedly looking away from him to hide his humiliation. The others are speaking, fast and awkward words as they try to convince Tom that they know Marcus and they were helping him, honest!

Tom's eyebrow arches in disbelief, "You're friends?"

They nod with almost perfect smiles paint their faces.

"Why haven't we met before?"

Tom can see them restraining themselves from pulling Marcus from his grasp.

"This is first I've ever seen you. I'm his guardian and I find it odd you three declare yourselves to be his friends."

They stare speechless.

"Come along, Marcus, let's get you home."

They make their way down the walkway leading to the parking lot and away from the opening leading to the crowd of shoppers. They're only a few steps away from the lot when Tom feels himself freeze in place without his consent. He calls his sleeping magic, feels it gather and rip upwards and sideways until Tom is able to shake his head. It takes a great amount of control not to attack blindly in his rage. His magic folds around him, snapping angrily.

He turns, eyes narrow in fury, "I will say this once and only once."

Tentacles of magic wrap themselves around the three rendering them immobile. They struggle to free themselves and try not to panic when the man steps closer.

"If you try to detain me again I will rip those machines from your necks. If you ever touch my ward I promise you will not meet a quick and painless death."

He flings them away with a snarl. He takes a threatening step forward letting an illusion of shadow and fire cloak him when they look like they might retaliate. The teenagers flee while Tom guides Marcus back to the car.

::O:O:O::

"I had it under control."

"I know."

"I didn't ask for your help."

"I know."

"I didn't need you."

"I know."

"…"

"Promise you won't tell Jim?"

"I promise."

::O:O:O::

Jim leaves them alone, not bothering to make small talk when they finally return home. He gathers the shopping bags and separates everything to their designated areas before heading to his room. He hides the books Tom bought in an old shoe box before stuffing it under his bed. He figures he'll give them back once Marcus is out of the house so Tom can hide them somewhere else.

He tries not to stare at Tom and Marcus on the sofa when he walks back into the living room. He drinks his beer quietly in his recliner not really watching the television. He's not sure how to broach the subject about what happened today while they were out. Whatever happened made Tom even more over protective of Marcus.

"Jim."

He turns to set his beer on the TV tray by his arm and mutes the television. He blinks the drowsiness from his eyes to see what Tom wants. Tom stares at the flashing television petting Marcus' head resting on his lap. Marcus' disheveled hair pokes out from under a maroon colored blanket and his body barely moves as he breathes.

"You've received many packages over the last few weeks," Tom's hand stills, "You're helping him, correct?"

Jim doesn't need to know him means Marcus so he nods. It's not a secret they know each others past. He knows Tom knows he's an inventor just like Tom knows he knows about his tendency to hurt people.

"Why not fix this body?"

He almost groans because Tom doesn't know.

"I don't have the specs for his body. I might do more harm than good if I try my hand at fixing it up," he says tiredly, "Best way to help him is to start over."

"Thank you, Jim, for everything."

He nods his head in acknowledgment because he doesn't want his voice to betray him. He groans when he stands and heads for his room trying to push away his miserable thoughts. The chance that he'll fail is too great and time is running out.

"G'night, Tom."

"Sleep well, Jim."

::O:O:O::

Marcus feels chills run down his back one afternoon. He doesn't think much of it since his sensors still glitch on occasion. He'd avoided fixing his frame so Jim could focus on the new one thinking he could handle it. Some days were worse than others but today the glitches aren't isolated to just a few areas.

A pressure behind his eye and in his ears becomes prickly as the hours pass. He feels disoriented and constantly runs into walls or objects around the house. He can feel himself breaking down quickly and tries not to panic. If he panics he might stress out and blow a fuse or something. He thought there would be more time. He had hoped this body would survive until Jim could transfer him to a new body or at least until the end of the year.

"Marcus?"

Tom's voice sounds far away. He tries to turn slowly to face him but he fails. He feels himself fall and the world spins until his head lands with a heavy thud on the floor.

"Marcus!"

A pair of hands turn his head and he sees Tom's worried face staring down at him.

"Marcus! Marcus, can you hear me? What's wrong?"

He can hear the panic in Tom's words as he continues to ask questions he can't answer. He's too weak to make his voice box work properly. Numbers appear on his left eye and his breathing increases. He can see the timer counting down.

He manages to whisper, "Burn... out..."

"'Burn out'? What?"

Marcus' view of the room darkens behind the scroll of numbers and symbols. One by one his senses shutdown leaving him blind, deaf, and immobile in Tom's arms.

"Dying…"

Tom lifts the boy feeling his heart plummet at the thought of Marcus dying. He rushes into the living room where Jim is standing with a look of concern focused on them.

"Jim!"

"Commencing termination. Caution: Tampering may cause severe injury."

"Jim! Do something!"

Jim moves quickly to clear the kitchen table and motions for Tom to lay Marcus over the wooden surface. Tom flinches when the arm cradling the boy's neck becomes hot. His anxiety jumps when the voice continues.

"Alert: Termination in progress."

Jim swears loudly and heads to his room. Tom sends an anxious look towards the other man when Marcus' body grows hotter.

"Warning: Core has been compromised."

Jim yells, "Take off the bandages or they'll catch fire. Get his shirt open for me."

Long fingers tear off the medical tape and unwind gauze without pausing as several areas of synthetic flesh turn red and it bubbles. Tom stares down in horror once he tears the thin shirt open. Some of the bubbled patches have already burst and they curl leaving burnt tattered strips of skin over plates of metal.