"Good morning, Aura."
The Asgardian lifted her head just enough to view the door as she sat in the corner of her room with her knees drawn up to her chin. Mr. Stark greeted her. If it physically was Mr. Stark. She sighed through her nose and buried her head back into her arms.
She didn't know how long it had been since her hallucination of Loki coming to save her. Frankly, she didn't care to know. It only saddened her heart to think about what happened. And it filled her with fear. She had never lost control of her mind in such a way. Not that she ever put much thought into controlling her mind, but still.
Her stomach knotted, and she withdrew further into her corner. She had hardly eaten since her delusional encounter. Hardly slept. She was afraid to sleep. Afraid to sleep in case she slipped back into a distorted reality.
Howard's white brows furrowed as he crossed the room. Placing a hand on his thigh, he gently lowered himself down to one knee. "Aura, are you alright? Where's my greeting hug?"
She shook her head.
He put a hand on her shoulder. "Did something happen? Did Fury do something to you?"
More head shaking. She stayed silent.
"Aura, I'm going to take you to do a physical assessment, okay? I know I'm not that kind of doctor, but I can see how tall you are, in the very least. The director said he hadn't seen you in a month, so he wanted me to check up on you."
Now she lifted her head fully. A month? It had only been a month of isolation, and she had already gone crazy? This didn't bode well for her psyche.
Howard smiled, even if her expression held nothing but sorrow. "There's those beautiful blue eyes. Come on, let's get you out and about for a little bit." Carefully rising, he held out a hand.
Aura stared at it, but she didn't move. She thought she had taken another's hand before, and it turned out to be false. Even though she thought she felt the sensation of flesh. She honestly couldn't tell if this Mr. Stark was real or imaginary.
"Are you sure nothing happened? Why are you refusing to speak to me? Please, take my hand."
She continued staring at the offered hand. What if this version of him was real? She did want to get out of her room. She was happy to see a familiar face, but she just didn't know if she could trust what her eyes thought was in front of her.
Howard partially frowned. "It's not going to bite. Why aren't you responding to me? Did Fury tell you something horrible about me?"
Her gaze found his. The new director didn't have much to say about Mr. Stark. And she wondered if there was much to say about him. He may be a man of science. However, he only wanted to learn more about the world and do what he could to improve it. He was a good man at heart.
"Please take my hand, Aura."
She finally gave in. Allowed one of her slender hands to rest in Howard's wrinkled one.
He smiled. "See? You know you don't have to fear me. Come on, let's get you out of here."
Aura's heart stopped. That's what Loki kept repeating. The organ suddenly beat fast. This wasn't real, was it? This was another hallucination, another nightmare. Her eyes found the door as they walked towards it. She wasn't getting out. She was only being led astray. Her breath held.
Closer and closer the open doorway approached. But she had perceived it as open once before. Consequently smacking into it in the process.
She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting to have a face full of hard, cold metal. Yet, it never came. She could see the change of light through her eyelids. One eye opened. Then the other. She was walking through the corridor with Mr. Stark. And she didn't realize she had clung to his arm.
Howard paused for a moment. "Are you alright? Were you afraid to come out of your room?"
Her eyes searched the hall. Glanced over her shoulder as the door to her room closed. Returned back to the older man beside her. She detached herself from him, although, she didn't release his hand. Blinked a few times.
He studied her briefly before returning to leading her to the testing wing.
Aura found herself having to vividly force each leg to take a step forward. Her mind had shifted. She no longer feared she might be living a false perception. No. Now, she feared the reality. She had walked this long hall many times before, and every single time, it held pain, suffering. No hope of death.
Her grip tightened. She had thought the experimentation days were over. Thought they had everything they needed to know about her powers—all those talks of reverse engineering and other science terms she didn't know the meaning to. Didn't they have enough information?
The Colonel wasn't even around anymore. Was this under the orders of Director Fury? Did he lie? Did this new council actually know about her and wanted more from her? She didn't think she had any more left to give. What else could they possibly do to her?
There was one thing she could never replicate. She couldn't turn back into the crimson monstrosity. Even when she tried. Even when they subjected her to extreme duress, she couldn't bring that side of her out by will.
Had they found something else to try on her? Discovered a new means of cruelty? A new way to humiliate her?
The one time she transformed, she didn't realize the implications of changing back to her normal form. The embers that spread across her skin had also eaten through her clothing. Once she returned to her natural state, she had been left naked. And she had been left there, alone on the floor until Peggy came to her aid.
Thankfully, no one had taken advantage of her vulnerable condition. At least, not that she remembered. But she thought she would know if something had happened. Peggy most likely would've shot them.
After her incident, Mr. Stark designed a special jumpsuit for her to wear. It was supposed to be fire-resistant. Another reason why for the testing. He had wanted to make sure the material would stay even through her hottest flames. And she had produced some very high temperatures. However, she still feared the moment she would turn again. She didn't need to be a scientist to know her demonic form had been much fiercer than any fire forged from her hands. Most likely, she would be exposed again. On a positive note, no one mentioned it, and she was more than thankful.
She looked up at Mr. Stark. He didn't seem sad or filled with regret. He seemed…normal. Happy, even. Was this not going to lead to another experiment? Was everything going to be fine for once?
That would be the real fantasy.
Howard led her into the area with the sub-room Aura was too familiar with. Went to the computer and turned it on. "I really don't know why I need all of this to record simple measurements. But, here we are."
Aura's sight never left the temperature-controlled room. Jaw setting and releasing. What was she supposed to do? What else could they have her do? It wasn't the fear of nude shame her jumpsuit hid. It covered recent scars, too.
He followed her gaze then stepped in front of her with his hands in pockets. "I promise you, I'm not putting you back in there. I haven't known Fury for long, but he's not sadistic like the Colonel. You're going to be okay."
She heard what he said, but she didn't process it right away. He may have blocked her sight, but she knew what was on the other side of him. Her eyes looked straight through him.
His tone deepened to get her attention. "Aura, look at me. You're not going in there. I promise."
Her eyes snapped up to meet his, startled by his change in voice.
"Listen to me. You're not going back in there. Do you trust me?"
She nodded.
"Good." He pulled his hands out of his pockets, but he kept one balled. "I brought you a gift."
Her brows knitted. Why would he bring her something? She had nothing to give him in return.
He opened his fist to reveal a necklace with a small round pendant.
Aura looked at it then him. "Why are you giving me this?"
Smiling at finally hearing her voice, he clasped the necklace around her. "I want you to see this as a symbol of hope. But it's also so I can show off my new project I'm working on." He winked.
Her mouth allowed a small grin.
Howard grabbed a measuring tape and put one end right under her toes. "That is an incredibly tiny version of what will one day be a large source of clean energy. Enough to power a whole corporation. I call it the Arc Reactor."
She used a finger to lift up the pendant. It was a kind of blue stone wrapped around the outside with copper wire. "Arc Reactor?"
"Yes. I have great plans for it. If I have anything to leave to my name, I want it to be that. And, of course, Tony, but I want my legacy work to be clean energy. No nonsense of the War or what came after. Just the Arc Reactor."
"How is Tony?"
The inventor paused, his expression softening. "Well, he's…he's becoming a young adult now, and he doesn't quite see everything as I would've hoped. But he's close to Maria, so at least he has her."
Aura frowned with concern. "But he has you, too. You tell me all the time about what you do together. Does he not understand why you work? That you work for him?"
He sighed, shaking his head. "No. He doesn't see it that way. Unfortunately, he thinks I abandon him for my job. I don't know how to get him to see otherwise."
"I'm sure you'll be able to get him turn around. You'll see."
"I really wish he could meet you. Maybe some of your compassion would rub off on him."
She offered a sincere smile. "I don't think you need my help. He probably just needs time."
Howard examined her for a bit. Finally looked at the measuring tape. "Well, you're still five feet, eight inches. Don't know why Fury thinks you'll grow anymore. Let's get your weight."
Her feet didn't have to be told to step on the scale across the room. She had done this many times.
He frowned. "You've lost ten pounds. You're only 105. Have you been eating?"
She froze. "A little."
"What's going on? You were strange when I came to get you."
"I-I would rather not talk about it. But it has nothing to do with Director Fury. I had a bad dream is all. It's hard for me eat a lot when I'm stressed."
Stark studied her long and hard. "I think you should tell me about it, but I know not to push sensitive matters. Maria taught me that. However, do you think you might have the courage to tell me the next time I visit? Fury says he has a project he's working on and doesn't know when he'll be able to come by next, so I'm sort of his stand-in."
Aura gave a slight nod. "I can try." She wanted the conversation to go elsewhere, though. "How much time do you have to spend with me today?"
"Oh, I've got another couple hours or so."
She grinned, happy to have prolonged company. "Can you tell me more about your Arc Reactor project?"
His eyes lit up as he directed her to the bench by the door. Excitedly explained his plans and the many possible futures for the project.
Many of the words flew over Aura's understanding, but she was just happy to see Mr. Stark happy. And the time flew by quicker than she would've liked. But she accepted it. Made sure she gave him an extra goodbye hug and thanked him probably too many times for the necklace.
She didn't want to see him go. She missed having someone to talk to. However, she remained light-hearted for his sake, so as not to burden him with her trivial problems. And she wanted him to enjoy their time together. Besides, she would see him again soon.
Or so she thought. She had no way of understanding this was the last time she would see Howard Stark.