Chapter Notes
Now I should probably warn all unsuspecting readers about my wonky timeline. So yeah. My timeline is wonky.
Especially with Matt Murdock in this chapter. I haven´t wachted Daredevil so I didn´t know he wouldn´t have an office with Nelson for years yet but I can´t be bothered to change it anymore. Just go with it. It´s more fun this way anyhow.
Chapter 2 – On future plans and *jazz hands* magic
"Shit, shit, shit.", I mumbled while burying my face in my head. I took a deep breath and groaned. When I looked up, I saw some of the other customers give me curious to annoyed looks. I refused to be embarrassed, this is New York! People are supposed to not give a shit!
Well, my tentative plans for a somewhat normal life were ruined.
Waiting for my steak I managed to convince myself that this was a good thing. The MCU at least was a universe I was very familiar with. And it seemed to be the Cinematic timeline. Events lined up as far as I could tell. The Captain America part was easily looked up.
Ugh, Captain America, not the biggest fan here. He is like a worse version of Superman in every single way – which isn´t great considering I don´t particularly like Superman either. They both hold a lot of power for always coming across a little naïve, but maybe that is a bit different in the comics? Also, very American, which as non-American? No, thank you, it´s a bit much.
I guess their signature colors could be worse.
And: firmly Team Ironman. The Captain is a shit friend to Stark in that movie and his reasoning does not stand up to logic very well. However, I could be bit poisoned when it comes to that issue thanks to a whole crapload of Team Ironman fanfics, so…
Before I could lose myself in an internal rant about all the ways Marvel had fucked characters over, I snapped back to reality. I had to remind myself that my knowledge about all of this could still be faulty.
Looking at photos of Stark I did make some discoveries. While him and Robert Downey jr. could be brothers, they were not identical. This Stark was taller, younger (let´s be honest, he was also hotter, sorry RDJ) and had striking blue eyes instead of RDJs brown ones.
To be fair, I only noticed the last detail because I had read a lot of fics fawning other "Tonys beautiful sad brown eyes", which got slightly creepy sometimes, when they started describing them in a lot of detail or used "orbes" instead of "eyes"- that´s fucking weird okay?
That made me a lot more nervous than I want to admit. Stark looked more like in the comic books. The comic books I hadn´t read. Not good.
Anywho, I started googling around to see who else was out there.
Unsurprisingly no Spiderman yet, Peter Parker must still be in elementary school age. Also, no Baxter Building or mentions of Reed and his crew, which was a relief. From everything I read about Richards, he would have been more trouble than his genius is worth, creating half of the problems the Fantastic Four must solve just by himself.
A surprise was the hit on a Professor Charles Xavier and his school of gifted youths. Knowledge about mutants was not public though.
While chewing on my (delicious) Steak, I had my ring comb through all available databanks of the alphabet soup (Yay, for super advanced alien tech! Uhu!) and Magento and his whole sheblang seemed to still exist, just expertly covered up.
From what I could tell Shieldra was way too happy to be able to steal Mutants regularly to let them be exposed to the public. And even if someone in the Mutant community noticed that trend, what were they supposed to do? Out themselves and ask a most likely frightened as hell public for help? That would go over well.
This was mostly still based on conjecture though. There wasn´t a lot of Shieldra I had access to yet. Ree had only so much reach and I guessed Hydra hid a lot of stuff on local servers in bum-fuck nowhere so no nosy/bored Shield-hacker could stumble upon them on accident.
I started to concentrate very hard on what I wanted to change in the future and cut my steak with an intense glare that probably looked ridiculous, not that I cared much in the moment.
It was certain now that I couldn´t just sit around and do nothing. Most MCU villains were a lot less scary as I knew them and their advantages pretty well. I sure as hell did not want to get snapped away by Thanos for five years, so superhero life it was.
Also, I could admit that I wanted to save some of my faves some pain. Stark for example. But Romanoff too. And Bucky.
Getting some of the Mutants out of Hydras clutches seemed worthwhile too. Maybe I could cooperate in that with Professor X?
I didn´t have to be afraid of him reading my mind because the ring actually had a simulation with the theme mind control in which it explained the automatically engaged shields against that sort of thing. Something about electricity fields or some such bullshit. (Still miffed with all this bogus comic book science.)
The mix and match of things I knew well and those less so left me slightly uneasy. I could not be all that sure of my info being reliable. Not just because of the X-Men but also because of any surprise comic influences. Still, for now that wouldn´t stop me from planning.
Extremely important (maybe a bit too high on my priority list considering I´m weighing it against saving people's lives) for me: learning magic.
I mean magic, hello? How could I not?
I didn´t care if it turned out I had no talent whatsoever for learning magic, that shit was just not optional.
Nodding to myself and again in high spirits I finished my meal, paid with construct card linked to my brand-new bank accounts and headed out.
Later in my fancy (and very expensive, oh God, I´m not used to this yet) hotel room I saw myself in the mirror for the first time.
Standing upright and confident I studied myself a.k.a stared creepily. Curly, copper hair, a pale face with a strong jaw and high cheek bones, a handful of freckles over a small and elegant nose, strong eyebrows and surprisingly full lips. The most striking were the eyes, a deep green with a myriad of blue and teal hues framed by thick lashes.
"I would fuck me…", I murmured to myself, turning my face to see it from different angles. "Hot damn, this ROB had some taste!"
I halted when my thoughts turned to some more unsavory places. Before, my sexuality had been always rather fluid, but I did prefer men generally.
"Does that mean I am gay now? Hm, I guess it depends on whether I identify as a man or as a woman? Or non-binary, I guess…"
Admittedly, I was comfortable in my new skin. Heading to bed I shrugged my shoulders and decided: Who cares? I don´t need to put a label on it if I don´t want to.
Taking a look at my crotch I started to grin. But it was time to do some experimenting.
The next day after an eventful morning I found myself slightly nervous in front of a very distinct building in Bleecker Street. I blew out an unsure breath, squared my shoulders and went up the stairs. A few seconds after my knock the door opened to reveal the Ancient One. I was surprised, I had already prepared an explanation of wanting to speak to her for the Sanctorums Master. My posture relaxed slightly:
"Oh, uhm, hello, I´m Al and I know about magic and I kinda really want to learn it and oh I´m not really from this Universe and I don´t know how I got here, but don´t worry! I´m not evil or anything, I just know some stuff and it´s nice to meet you?"
I chuckled nervously and tried my best to look non-threatening. I was very aware that the sorcerer supreme usually delt with any interdimensional threats, but I was somewhat confident that I didn´t belong in that category.
At least my Spiderman-style rant seemed to have amused her, judging by her smirk and the light twinkling in her eyes. Ohmygod, that immediately reminds me of Dumbledore, not good, Dumbledore is never good news in fanfic, abort this train of thought, abort, abo-
"Hello, it´s nice to meet you too. I am the Ancient One, as you already seem to know. Come in Al, we have much to discuss."
She opened the door wider and let me inside. Walking behind her, I tried to look not like the child in the candy store I felt like while taking in the sights I had only seen in a movie before. It was a very whimsical place, and I was giddy with a sort of manic excitement.
The Ancient One sat me down and readied a cup of tea for herself and for me. My curiosity was peaked, all sources agreed: Her tea was supposed to be phenomenal. I cooled the beverage with my breath before taking a careful sip. I relaxed further into my seat while humming with satisfaction. Good stuff!
When I turned my attention back to my host, I colored in embarrassment. She was fully laughing at me now. In my defense, my people skills had taken a hit after spending what had to be months in total seclusion.
"It´s good tea…", I mumbled in my tea, taking another sip in favor of watching the Ancient One.
"It most certainly is, I thank you for your compliment.", she said, still smiling but slowly turning serious.
"I must admit, I have already been aware of you. That object you carry", she gestured to my ring, "sends out a very foreign but powerful signature. Add to that, that your future is hidden from me, and I would have visited you soon anyway. You spared me a trip."
"Huh", I answered, so she can´t see me with the Time stone? "I guess that the theory that you can´t use the infinity stones in another universe extends to people from another universe being immune to the stones…"
It was somewhat wonky comic book logic but not all that out there.
What did surprise me was that she was able to track my ring with magic. I didn´t she would be able to track technology, so there actually is something magical going on with the ring? So super advanced space alien techno-magic? Urgh, that sounded even more like a headache.
"So, you know what the Eye of Agamotto is? That is a surprise.", the Ancient One said, raising one eyebrow.
What followed was a long conversation about what I knew (about what I was willing to tell her), where I came from and what my plans were.
"Why do you want to learn magic?", she asked finally. "You already have an incredible powerful weapon there. What do you get out of this?"
"Are you kidding me? It´s magic! Who doesn´t want to learn magic!", I started excitedly, calming down slightly before continuing: "Also, it´s important to diversify, if I ever encounter someone who figures out a weakness of the ring, I´m screwed. It´s incredibly versatile but I need to be careful I don´t use it as a crutch when I have other options."
"Those are valid concerns.", my host mused, again with a slight smile. "Alright, I will allow you to learn. Normally I require secrecy from my sorcerers, but your primary way of fighting has nothing to do with what you will learn in Kamar-Taj. We will have to make quite a few changes in treating your novice ship anyway, if you persist on your idea of rescuing Mutants."
"Yeah, if possible, I would like to set up my life in NYC in the next few weeks before temporarily moving to Kamar-Taj until I learn to make portals and return to my life here to learn in a more unregulated schedule."
I looked up nervously at her impassive face. I felt like I was asking for a lot of allowances, things she would not normally say yes to.
The Sorcerer Supreme hummed.
"It is unorthodox, but I will allow it." She smiled at me. "Please return to the Sanctum when you are ready. Master Drumm will open you a portal."
I grinned like an idiot.
"Thank you so much! This is perfect."
She escorted me to the door and said her goodbyes. I stepped outside and waved at her, still with a giant smile on my face.
Because Magic!
With a skip in my step, I pondered what it meant that the Ancient One wasn´t an old man with a beard like in the comics. It was good for me, I supposed, it had made me less nervous in our talk. But what decides any of this? Why Stark but not the Ancient One?
My incredibly deep and important introspection broke off abruptly when I spotted an ice cream place around the corner.
Magic and ice cream! This is a great day!
My good mood didn´t even take a hit when I plunged myself headfirst in the chaos that is the NYC real estate market.
I ended up buying an apartment in Midtown Manhattan, near where I remembered the Stark Tower was to be build. It was soo expensive, absolutely ridiculous. My heart bleed for the millions and millions of dollars I spend. But at least I had a lot of space, a rarity in most cities, but especially those like New York.
Two bathrooms, two bedrooms and even an excellent studio, that I enthusiastically equipped.
After spending over a hundred million on an apartment it was very easy to get looser with my money. I spent much of the next week with buying furniture and clothes.
I decided not to interfere with Starks journey for now, most of the damage was already done and the happenings would shape his views as Ironman. I didn´t want to change too much yet.
If I could, I would definitely buy as much stock as I could when he came back and tanked SI course by announcing the closure of the weapons branch. I set my ring up with an automation to spend as much as would be feasible without raising too many doubts. I still had a few weeks, so Ree could make the path of the money look as natural as possible.
I felt a slight déjà vu as I took a nervous breath in front of the building I had an appointment in. This time I wasn´t actually all that nervous for myself. I just didn´t want to screw up.
Not wanting to be late, I made my way to the office that housed the yet to be vigilante Daredevil, one Matt Murdock.
One of the reasons for me being nervous was that I had not actually watched his show. The only shows I had watched were Jessica Jones, Punisher and Loki. I had a broad idea what the others were about, but it wasn´t much info to go off.
When entering I was greeted by a somewhat hurried Foggy Nelson.
"Ah, hello, sorry, we currently have problems with our employees, so everything is bit hectic. My name is Franklin Nelson. Did you have an appointment?"
He smiled open but a bit distracted and came towards me, hand stretched out. I promptly shook the offered hand and smiled back.
"Hello! No problem, don´t worry. I indeed have an appointment with your partner, Mr. Murdock. My name is Al Ravenstock."
"Ah, come on then." He gestured to follow him. He stopped before Murdock's door and knocked.
"Matt, Mr. Ravenstock is here.", he called out.
"I´m ready, let him in.", came the prompt answer from the other side. Nelson excused himself with a smile and left. I entered the lawyer's office. Just like the Ancient One Murdock looked exactly like his on-screen counterpart. He sat behind his desk and tilted his head up.
"Hello Mr. Ravenstock, good to meet you in person. You were rather vague concerning your reasons for coming today."
I smiled, not entirely sure if he could "see" facial expressions and sat down on the chair in front of me, opening my suit jacket to make myself comfortable.
"Hello Mr. Murdock, well, you see there were some good reasons for me to be vague. I´m still not sure if it was the right decision to come here. I´m not even sure this is something you can help me with, but I can´t really trust most lawyers with this."
I cleared my throat and let the ring scan the room for listening devices while studying Murdock reaction to my admittedly paranoid explanation. He seemed impassive and patient, he didn´t perceive my ring which was good. I was not sure how he would react to me being aware of his abilities, but I could guess he wouldn´t like it.
"So," I took a deep breath, "to understand where I am coming from, I have to tell you that I know you to be more aware of your surroundings than you let on and that you are probably a better fighter than most baseline human, who can see."
I could see him tensing up and rushed on before he could react negatively.
"But that is the reason I can trust you with this. I need someone with legal expertise on my side sooner or later. You are not, by far, the only one with special abilities, I belong in that category too and there are more."
Murdock's shoulders relaxed somewhat, and he leaned back, still hyper focused on me. He was still defensive, but curiosity peeked through now.
"Have you ever heard about mutants?"
Prompted by his silence I told him what I knew about Mutants and the governments involvement with them. His brow furrowed as I got to the experiments on humans and the proof I could provide. As I finished, he spoke up: "So what exactly made you seek legal counsel?"
I appreciated that he didn´t ask what my abilities were or how I got this information. Even a super space magic ring would not make any of this remotely legal.
"Multiple things, I won´t be as lowkey as most enhanced individuals and if I get in trouble with SHIELD or the alphabet soup, I want to have a lawyer I can trust and tell everything without concern. But my main ask is more complicated. I want legislation. Legislation protecting Mutants and enhanced preferably worldwide. I know right now that is a pipedream and we will have to make concessions. But I also have reason to believe that in the near future more and more enhanced will come forward and start vigilante-like work, being different will become more normalized."
I explained to him my plan to use the goodwill of the public to get them used to the idea of enhanced humans and how the inevitable legislation concerning heroes and vigilantes could be used to cement the rights of Mutants and enhanced.
Well, I wanted the Sokovia Accords with more human rights basically. Not that I could tell him that. I knew that all of this would still be years in the future and told him so, but firstly if I wanted him to be prepared, I had to give him time and secondly, I had no idea how my early activity would influence the timeline.
After laying out my plan it was time to lure him in with the carrot.
"I am aware that I am asking for a lot of work, but I also have the means to compensate you for your efforts."
I pulled check out of my jacket and put it on the desk.
"This is a check over 10,000$, I`d like to have you on retainer.", I finished with a smile.
Murdock sat still for moment, thinking – then he nodded.
"Alright, I can see your reasoning." I swallowed a laugh at his pun, coughing into my fist. He smirked.
We talked for the next hour about his concerns and about the details of our arrangement. I threw around the idea of founding a charity organization with the goal of drawing more attention to the abduction cases and putting pressure on shady government agencies, but in the end, we agreed, that we would just be putting a target on our backs.
Before we finished, he asked: "How exactly did you find out about me?"
Realizing what he really wanted to know, I assured him: "Don´t worry, the way I found out, no one else could. Your secret is safe."
When I left his office, I felt lighter and accomplished. I was somewhat certain he still had his doubts about me and my version of the accords, but he saw (heh) the difficult spot the mutants and enhanced were in if any of what I was saying rang even remotely true. He would go along with it for now.
I certainly left him some work. Pretty sure this kind of human rights law wasn´t even in his wheelhouse but oh well! Not my problem!
Time for magic!
Chapter End Notes
Yes, yes, the mysterious changes to the MCU... Why does Stark look more like his comic-self but the Ancient One looks like Tilda Swinton? Because I felt like it :) And it trips our dear MC up, so that is fun.
If any of you have a fun idea of how to subvert MCs expectations, feel free to comment.
