Wow, we really went through a whole year of weekly updates.
Happy 5th Anniversary to this story! (Although I'm writing this in August/September 2021.) This cute chapter is the perfect celebration chapter.
Chapter 204: Date Night
James (and Angela's) Penthouse, Upper East Side - 22:36 PM
Angela jolts awake when she hears the door open. Even before she understood she awoke, her hand was already gripped on the gun she keeps hidden in the couch for these reasons. Swiftly, she pushes the blanket off her body before leaping up. Standing on the couch, she finds herself pointing her weapon at James who's already in a fighting stance with two glowing fists.
Neither lowers their arms, exchanging sharp glares that soon break into grins as he shrinks. Once he starts flying, Angela drops her gun onto the couch as she pounces over the back. As she expected, James grows back to his normal size to jump her and they both crash onto the ground.
Strike at your attacker and never the weapon. Good fighters always go for the body. And she knew he would always go for hers.
Before Angela could grapple landing on the floor, she reaches back to grab him but he isn't there. So much for going for his body. Angela looks over her shoulder and grins because she knows his moves by now. Angela turns to her other side and the moment James is in the middle of growing back to his normal size, Angela pins him to the ground with a hand on his neck.
"Wow," James exhales with a cheeky grin as Angela crawls up to him. Her fingers graze his neck as she props herself up on her side beside him to kiss him along the side of his face and down his neck. "We should do that more often."
Angela's laugh vibrates against his skin. "Don't sneak into a home when a woman is alone or you're getting beat up."
"It's our home," James argues.
Angela pauses, looking up at him. "You said our."
She reaches up and kisses him more, cupping his face with her other hand as he runs his hands up and down the small of her back. Half of her waist is arched onto his groin, her leg hooked around his body. She slowly inches herself upwards so their bodies are aligned. This wouldn't be the first time an impromptu spar session ended with them on the ground and their lips locking.
"Want a drink?" James asks. He winces as he readjusts his position on the floor, scooting back so that she's now lying beside him instead of straddled on top.
Angela pauses, looking at him quizzically. "Are you okay? What is this?"
"A date. Or so I'm making it one. So, a drink?"
"A date."
James traces her collarbones that peek out of her loose tee. "We've been together for nearly a decade and you're acting as if I've never taken you on one."
After being together for a decade while navigating their hectic Academy days and their unscheduled work days combined with never being home and now living together, they've gotten used to not planning designated date nights or putting so much effort into dressing up. They spend any free time they can together and it works for them.
"We've been together for a decade so I know what happens once you open a bottle," Angela whispers as she kisses him again. "So, you wanna go stealthily or make some noise?"
-o-
Stark Towers - 23:08 PM
Emily has never been more relieved to come home after a long day at the office. She isn't tired and it's not her insomnia from during and post-grad school coming back to haunt her. She probably still had those sleeping pills she's been ignoring since working on her thesis and project if she needs them.
But a burst of energy surges through her veins as she takes her heels off at the door. She's been focusing more on Stark Industries ever since she got back from her honeymoon as Daniel continued working remotely for his SO at the Academy. She never was a legitimate agent and he wasn't really one either (both happy consultants and team members) only wanting to avoid fieldwork like the plague unless they're desperately needed.
After Emily married, she had to change her signature to match her new hyphenated name. She didn't have to but she wanted it so badly. Once Sigyn got back from her secret and sudden wedding ceremony, they had the conversation of their elementary notebook scribbles finally coming to life.
She isn't surprised to see their bedroom light still on. She assumed that Daniel might've waited up for her.
Not entirely the case.
When Emily opens the door, she sees Daniel lying on his side asleep. He's in his PJs and glasses folded on the bed in front of him on top of a pile of paperwork.
Emily puts her bag down by the door and dims the lights. She walks over to his side of the bed and takes his glasses to put on his nightside table, seeing a mess of paperwork he was working on before he fell asleep. It's many lab reports from the Academy, his SO's class. Emily smiles to herself as she puts the papers back into near piles, careful not to wake her husband. She catches a chemical equation that should be corrected but ignores it.
Emily put on her pyjamas and got ready for bed, unaware that she went through her entire nighttime skincare routine since that equation error and how to correct it was stuck in her mind. It was balanced wrong from the first step so the whole proof is incorrect. The moment Emily slips into bed beside Daniel, she grabs the report and one of Daniel's pens to make the correction herself.
And then she figures she might as well finish the report.
"What happened?" Daniel asks.
Emily isn't aware of how much time passed until she heard her confused and disoriented husband waking up. The sun is rising now. She looks over at Daniel as he yawns and reached over for his glasses on the nightstand. He didn't put them there when he fell asleep but it's muscle memory to reach for them there. Once they're on, he can see Emily sitting against the bed frame with a lab report on her knees and a neat pile between them.
"You fell asleep so I took over," Emily responds. "I'm exhausted but this was better than taking sleeping pills."
"I love you so much," Daniel tells her, resting his head beside her. "Now go to sleep."
He laughs when she shows him her signature at the bottom of the reports she marked. Those cadets will be stoked upon seeing that the Sci-Tech goddess herself, Dr. Emily Stark-Banner, read their work.
-o-
Wakanda's Royal Library - 18:16 PM
Iqadi and Imanu spend their night in the palace library. He's sitting up and she's lying down beside him with her upper half on top of him and her knees up on the couch. His legs are on the couch as well, aligned with her body. On her stomach, she holds a book on European medieval history open for both of them to read as he holds a glass of wine. His other arm is draped over her shoulder and he runs circles on her firm biceps with his thumb.
"A renaissance of experimental science," Iqadi reads, pointing at the picture. Two philosophers ponder with circular graphs. "A study of nature using math and philosophy."
"I swear we were doing that before the meteor landed," Imanu whispers, nudging her.
Iqadi laughs. She leans her head back, looking up at him. Iqadi purses her lips and Imanu stretches forwards to kiss her, stopping when Kili approaches them. They look at her as she leans against a shelf, hugging a tablet to her chest.
"Imagine the country saw you two so casual," Kili says with a cheeky smile.
"What do you want?" Imanu asks before sipping the rest of his wine. He has a feeling he'll be needing it for whatever Kili wants.
"Imanu," Iqadi mockingly scolds, patting him with the back of her hand.
"Something loosely related to whatever boring thing you two nerds were looking at," Kili responds, taking a seat on the couch by Iqadi's feet. She taps on her tablet and pulls up a hologram of her lab report. "So in my lab today for physics, my teacher decided to leave us with a question to write a response for tomorrow."
"I'm not doing your homework for you," Imanu states.
Iqadi sits up, putting her book down on the table beside her wine glass. "I'll do it."
Kili smiles proudly, ignoring her brother. "So the question is … why does matter exist?"
Iqadi's lips part as she thinks it over, turning towards Imanu who's glancing at his wine glass but focused on her thoughts. When they lock eyes, they burst into a debate. Kili tries her best to scribble this all down, citing her amazing sister-in-law and her not-as-amazing brother.
"You're not even answering the question!" Imanu yells at Iqadi.
"I'm providing evidence!" Iqadi argues, grabbing Kili's tablet to draw him a diagram.
"Kili is asking how not why."
"Why explains the how."
"How explains the why."
Kili slides forwards on the couch and takes her tablet back. "You two are being too technical and nitpicky."
Iqadi pauses. "I'm getting more wine."
She rises from the couch and takes the empty bottle with her on the way out. She didn't even bother putting her shoes back on.
"She's so badass," Kili states proudly. "Educated women are really influential." She looks over at her brother who is slouching in his spot on the couch, downing the rest of his wine glass before staring her down. "What?"
"If we get divorced, it's your fault," Imanu tells her.
Kili shrugs. "It's your relationship so you deal with it. That's what you get for being in love. For the record, if you do break up then I'm going with her."
Iqadi walks back in with a freshly open bottle. She looks at Imanu with a smile as she swiftly sits next to him and refills his glass.
"This is fun," she tells him before she leans forwards to kiss him.
Imanu smiles at her, trying his best to ignore Kili looking at him from behind Iqadi and her mouthing you're welcome.
-o-
Merida's Apartment, Manhattan - 2:42 AM
Merida sits crossed-legged in the middle of her bed with her laptop open in front of her on one side. On the other, she has a bag of takeout Chinese food she picked up on the way home from a late debriefing. She's glad her apartment is located near so many 24-hour restaurants to cater to her sporadic SHIELD work schedule. She's got leftover noodles drenched in sesame chicken and its sweet sauce, not caring that she'll inevitably stain her bedsheets. She'll likely be awake all night and the laundry room will be empty.
Merida glances at her laptop when she notices Blake answering her video call. He's still in California so it's only almost midnight there. She gives a small wave with her chopsticks as she eats a mouthful of noodles. Their long-distance relationship has been calling at weird times and even weirder text messages, and they love it.
Blake: Why are you still awake?
"Dinner," Merida responds gesturing to her food.
Merida puts her food down and looks at Blake. She notices that he isn't his usual chatty self as he lies on his couch with a barely audible television show blaring in the background. He isn't watching it so that's not distracting him.
"Okay…" Merida mutters. "Weird question for me but are you okay?"
Blake glances at her, cocking a brow.
Blake: God, that must've been hard for you to ask.
"I have dramatic friends," she responds. "You know because you've met them. So, what's up?"
Blake: … you want to hear?
"I mean, everybody's allowed one good meltdown every now and then in my presence."
Blake: But I wanted to save mine.
Merida shrugs. "Then save it."
Merida knew she was doing something right when Blake sighs with a smile.
Blake: Mama is getting on my case about my impulsivity. She thinks I'm moving too fast into a relationship with you. She thinks that I'm being flighty again.
"Flighty? Again?" Merida holds back a laugh because she didn't expect that word.
Blake: Yeah, like impulsive. It's basically her favourite word about me. I can say flighty in every language I know because she's used most of them. Flighty, Flatterhaft, Agité, Capriccioso, непостоянный.
"I know what the word means. I mean, she thinks you're flighty? Again?"
Blake: I'll tell you. I grew up in Switzerland and did two years of my BA in Geneva before finishing it in Berlin. Then I was offered an internship in Greece so, of course, I went. Also for spanakopita and to pick up Greek. I stayed there for a bit before applying to a different internship in Montpellier, luckily getting to live on my sister's couch. Then I chose to do my Master's thesis in freaking Russia … mostly to pick up Russian. Anyways, now I'm a columnist in San Francisco for an online paper and in crippling student debt.
"You mean love advice guru."
Merida thinks back to when he first told her that he has a fucking Master's degree and is a linguist, and yet he's giving love advice. It was the funniest thing she has ever heard and always makes her smile when she thinks about it. Even Blake has a small smirk when she mentioned it. Blake's journalist. He's always watching people but people don't look at him the same way.
Blake: Once upon a time.
"But I can see the flighty part, literally," Merida tells him. "You seem unable to stay still. Your passport must be full of stamps."
Blake: I'll show you sometime. But, yeah, my mom's been on my case given that I haven't stayed in a place for more than two years unless she was raising me.
"What does being flighty have to do with me?"
Blake: Why do you think you haven't met my mom or the rest of my sisters? You're a flight risk.
Merida is about to argue but remembers when she brought him to Stark-Banner's wedding and ditched him because she didn't want to explain his presence. " … fair."
Blake: I told my mom I wanted to go places. I didn't want to stick around. Why do you think I'm a journalist or studied journalism? I have places to go, things to learn, stories to tell, and people to meet. It's easy to adapt to a new place and I have a handful of languages to help work through a language barrier. Enjoying life is essential but fuck, Mer, it's an effort.
Merida can't help but laugh this time. "Your mom gave you shit over that? You have nothing tying you down. You didn't even mention the shark tattoo."
Blake: Brooke is using that as blackmail for now. The rest of my sisters don't know because she wants that leverage against me. Anyways, I get that shit from my mom often. It didn't help that this time I told her I probably couldn't settle in San Francisco and a girlfriend to visit in New York.
"Really, who are you seeing?"
Blake narrows his eyes at her as she grabs another bite of noodles and sesame chicken.
Blake: Funny.
"Thought so," Merida responds.
Blake: Damn, Agent Mer, I ran out of charming one-liners to leave you smitten. You're hard to please but it's fun to try. I'll continue my quest later and maybe give you a meltdown. I love you.
"Even when I'm giving you shit?"
Blake: Especially then. I'll see you soon.
-o-
Xavier (and Sigyn's) Apartment - 4:37 AM
Sigyn's eyes flutter open. Her heavy eyes fight against her urge to keep them open but ultimately lose when she spots her husband walking back into the room half-dressed for work in his field uniform and mumbling on the phone. He's probably being sent somewhere. The downfall of being with someone in this field of work is that they never know when they're going to be whisked away for work.
When he ends the call and locks eyes with her, he notices that she's awake and smiles at her. Now, Sigyn's wide awake and ready for the day.
"Morning," Xavier greets, walking over to kiss her forehead.
"Hey, quick question," Sigyn sits up in their bed, "what the fuck is your job? You know, when you're not running an overnight camp."
Xavier pauses, sitting on the edge of the bed on her side. He stares at her, realizing she's serious. He can't help but smile at her. "I'm a specialist, just like Angela, Merida, and James. It changes every time they call. It's not a team effort this time or so it seems. Wanna join me?"
Her eyes widen a little. "Seriously?"
"Yeah, why not. They were going to send me on a recon mission and I don't see why you can't come."
"Sure. It's not like I'm doing anything." Her plans consisted of running unimportant errands, going through their unopened wedding registry gifts, and visiting Asgard to bother Apollo.
"Great. I'll go change."
"You're already getting dressed!" Sigyn yells as her magic coats over her body to change out of her PJs.
Later, they're walking through a SHIELD corridor hand-in-hand. Sigyn is used to being the sore thumb in nearly every situation. Growing up in the SHIELD orphanage, she was the kid who didn't get adopted until the head agents spoke with her to-be Aunt after hours. In high school, she was Xavier Rogers' hot blonde cheerleader girlfriend and then Apollo's long-lost cousin. On Asgard, she was Loki and Amora's daughter — nobody dared near the off-kilter sorceress destined as the most powerful in all the realms. Now she's Captain Rogers' magical wife and the only one in their present location not in a standardized uniform or even with a badge or lanyard on her.
"Since when do you wear a suit?" Sigyn whispers, leaning closer to him so he'd hear her.
Xavier changed into a suit after he invited her to work, strapping the shield onto his back as if he was in his standard Operations' field uniform. Sigyn, in contrast, is wearing skinny jeans with the front of her white button-up tucked in, and grey sneakers.
"I'm supposed to," he responds casually.
Sigyn scoffs. "Yeah, sure, but you never did it. So when did you start?"
Xavier stops walking, prompting Sigyn to do the same. Still holding hands, he walks her to the side to clear the way. She leans against the wall, looking up at Xavier who has an arm prepped just above her head as he looks down at her as if they were back in high school with the lockers and he was about to be late to football practice.
"Since my wife started joining me," Xavier mutters, pecking her temple.
Sigyn's lips tickle into a smile and Xavier kisses the corner of her lips. "Alright, Captain."
Barely five minutes into their mission and Sigyn was already bored. She and Xavier hide behind a barricade of shipment containers, both now in more field-appropriate uniforms. While he stuck with whatever ensemble SHIELD pays him to wear, she magicked her usual Asgardian combat outfit on the way over. She leans against the containers, twirling magic wishing her fingers as Xavier peers over the edge.
"This is a forced recon," Xavier tells her. "We're not supposed to fight."
Sigyn holds back laughter, biting down on her lips. "They really sent you on a surveillance mission?"
Xavier shrugs. "I'm just reciting the definition of a forced recon. Note, recon. Surveillance implies action."
"I thought we were on a mission, not one of your boring Academy lectures. This is my first and last mission with you."
Before Xavier could respond, a small sphere rolls on the ground behind them. Sigyn and Xavier look at it. He takes his shield off his back just as Sigyn lights up her hands and coats the bomb with magic, whipping it back to where it came from. Xavier and Sigyn look over just as it explodes, a manic smile crawling onto her face as his eyes widen.
"Touchdown!" Sigyn screams as Xavier facepalms beside her. She catches his grin under the surface-level embarrassment.
"Well, now they'll see us," Xavier says.
Sigyn waves her hands up and a thin layer of magic crosses over them. "Psionics, basically telepathic communication with projection. Pretty much told all the dudes out there that we're not here so if they ran here, they won't see us."
Xavier scoffs. "I thought we were on a mission, not one of your boring magic lectures."
"Funny," she says, "you said no fighting and that means no killing, I guess. Besides, stuff like that takes time we don't have."
Xavier starts running the other way and she follows. "I love you. Come with me on more missions."
"Ugh, do I have to?" She laughs.
-o-
Asgard
After hours, the palace isn't active. Few staff members are on the premises so Apollo is lucky nobody is around to see him just coming home. It's not that anyone would ask if they saw him. He's the Prince. They'll just greet him and get on, maybe chat a little but nothing more. Besides, if they do ask, he'll divert the conversation.
"Where were you?"
Apollo turns around and sees Freya standing behind him. She approaches him in her sleeping garments while he was still dressed for the night on the town he partook on. Her arms are crossed as she looks him up and down with a straight face.
"Nowhere," Apollo lies.
Freya hums in disbelief. "Sure."
"My own parents weren't asking me because I'm an adult."
Freya steps closer to him. "Or because they didn't know you left. Did you sneak out?"
"Freya, I don't have to ask for permission to leave so why would I need to sneak out?"
She narrows her eyes at him. "You're very defensive tonight."
Apollo huffs. "Are you aware that you're interrogating me?"
"Because you're acting suspiciously."
Apollo opens his mouth to argue but stops himself, grinning as he looks at her furrowed brows. He nods at palace staff members passing by before locking eyes with Freya again.
"You're…" he starts, pausing before taking a lock of her dark hair between his fingers. "Goodnight, Freya."
Before Freya could respond, Apollo kisses her on the cheek. When he backs from her, he notices that her expression softened and it takes her a few seconds to look at him again.
"I'll find out what you were up to," Freya states.
"You will," Apollo holds her by the shoulders, wrapping an arm around her as he walks her down the hall. "I hope you do. Telling and discovering a secret destroys its secrecy but, I'm rooting for you."
Freya pauses as they continue walking. "You are?"
"Better question, why were you waiting up for me?"
Freya stumbles in her steps and Apollo catches her, laughing as she shoves him off of her. She avoids his eyes again as Apollo leans against the wall, sliding down as he holds his sides. He takes a few breaths as Freya remains standing beside him.
"Are you done?" Freya asks.
"No," Apollo grins up at her. "Why were you waiting for me?"
"As you said, telling a secret destroys its secrecy."
Apollo nods, only accepting that response as defeat. "Fair game, Freya."
Will I be continuing the weekly updates? I'm happy to say that I'll be continuing for a while. I'll just be finishing the season before taking a hiatus for myself. Besides, we gotta figure out what Apollo's been up to.