GAME ON PART TWO
PRESENT
“So...”,Tony was pacing all over the living room. “Just to see if we're on the same page here”,he looked at me and then at everyone else on the room with his brows lifted.
“You're the first fire avatar in your home”,he waited for my approval and so I nodded.
“And so a war happened- I mean,obviously,because the other avatars think the fire ones are weird and murderous- no question here“,he shook his head,his palm covering his mouth as to amplify his mumbling.
“Dear daddy asked the teen avatar to lead a war”,he raised a finger, “the teen avatar goes to war for five years and comes back with the bad guy's head on a silver plate to give dear daddy”,he raised a second one.
“Dear daddy then kills momma bear in a big blast because he's afraid the little bear might turn out to have a stick in between his legs and dear daddy just can't have that”,he raised a third finger,shaking his head.
We were all just kinda looking at him as he went. Most of the guys were kind enough to not say anything while I was speaking,and Tony was the first one to talk.
I should have seen this coming though.
Of course they'd need some explanations.
Steve was now on the couch,as I was in the middle,between him and Tasha; his legs opened as he leaned back,his hands hanging from his thighs. He had lowered his gaze,like he was calculating something. Probably all these new information i'd brought in.
“So daddy gets his crown,pins momma bear's assassination to little war veteran- and so the kid runs off until she's cast in our dear Earth,somehow meets Fury along the way and joins the Avengers” ,he now turned to me.
“S'that right?”,he asked me,his lips curved downwards.
“Mostly..yeah”,i shrugged.
“Families,huh”,he tried to joke,though no one could laugh.
“I just don't get why you never mentioned that..to me at least”,Barton said,his eyes half closed.
“Because...”,i took one big breath before continuing. “Fury already thought I was going crazy. Fuck,for all I know I may be just that. But...she's dangerous. And..Steve is right”,i admitted and Steve lifted his gaze to me,his neck turned as he was looking at my eyes.
“If I want you all to trust me...i should trust you first”,i said with a faint smile,in a voice low and somehow weak.
Steve let out a half smile,but it didn't stay on his lips for too long.
“In any minute now the Pelimorrean Army could be plotting their plan to attack this planet. I don't know when,but it will come down to this eventually,and when it does...”,i huffed, “I trust you enough to know you will fight by my side”,i admitted with a faint smile.
“Yes,very sentimental and all,that speech of yours kid”,Tony huffed, “ But I think we have more pressing matters on our hands for now than your weird daddy-daughter relationship and his forthcoming intergalactic attack”
He took a moment to himself before mumbling something again. “Although this too is a pressing matter as well now that I think about it...”
“Mind explaining the Sparrow's secret power though?”,Natasha spoke to me,cutting Tony's murmurs short. “I mean,i believe we should take care of her first,and follow your father's attack later...”,she moved her head,her brows knitted together.
“Um..yeah-right..sorry”,i said,this entire conversation making me momentarily forget the main problem here.
“See,all this time..i just couldn't get it. How comes she's always ahead of us- she had the Lodger's eyes and ears. The homeless's too. They are everywhere; give them a few dollars and they'll sing for you”,i began explaining,now standing up,walking up and down the living room.
“As far as Mr Key goes...i think it has something to do with the homeless..i think there's a reason they all disappear after a while..”,i was mostly mumbling,hand on my chin.
“But then...how can she avoid my attacks? I could see myself hitting her..so..just how? Y'know?- I was growing desperate,i couldn't exactly tell anyone about her visit,and so I decided I would attack,out in the open,no tricks no anything,just pure attack. Which,i now get why wasn't really a good plan-”
“Come on kid,get to the point this ain't a full time job you know”,Tony hummed with a sarcastic smile.
“But it was Barton who opened my eyes”,i pointed at him and he pointed at himself,surprised if nothing more.
“Wh- Me?”,he tilted his head,his lips parted.
“Yes!”,i walked towards him and then grabbed his head with both my hands. “Yes,you magnificentbastard,you!”,i said loudly,a big smile on my face as I kissed his lips.
“You see-” ,i turned his head back,i could tell everyone's eyes were following me,i didn't have time for that though. “You said that word. Myeyes”,i said in a mimicking tone.
“Hold up-”,Steve lifted his palm,but I wasn't stopping.
“My eyes. They are the one thing I trust more than anything in this world,and yet,they betrayed me?“, I recited his words. “Well..they didn't”
Barton tilted his head,trying to connect the dots.
“She did”
“Um- Yeah. Kid,you say that like you just blew our minds with your grant discovery- yet it doesn't really make any sense,in case you don't get it from our faces”,Tony moved his palm in front of his face,but I was still smiling.
“That's her thing,Tony. She's affecting our eyes; our very perspective”,i spelled it out and he tilted his head; Barton though seemed to actually get it.
“That's how Barton saw what happened,because she was only affecting me. In my head,i thought I was attacking her,that's what my brain told me. But not what was actually happening”,i shook my head,a big half smile on my lips.
“So..”,Steve was now pointing at me, “Somehow she affected you but not Barton? Why? How does it work?”,he grabbed his chin with his hand. “But then she affected him the night of the attack. What happened in between ?”
“I...i don't know exactly but..i do have a vague idea..”
“Yeah,we're gonna need more than that,kid”
“Well..”,i lowered my gaze just before I looked at Barton, “have you ever looked her in the eyes?”
Barton lowered his head,his brows knitted together as he was lost in thought for a while.
“I..”,he huffed and took a pause. “Yes. The day before,i remember it because..”
“Because you felt something from them”,i finished his sentence and he turned to me surprised. “Whatever her deal is,it's all coming from her eyes”
“Good thing we haven't looked at her”,Natasha shrugged.
“Yes but still,she knows of us”,Steve noted and I nodded.
“Yeah,she has eyes on us either way...”
“Still”,Steve stood up, “How comes she knew about you? About your planet and your past and everything?”
I took in a huff of air,trying to put my thoughts in order. Having them know all about my past wasn't easy; it felt as if I was reliving everything- though,to be honest, I never truly forgot.
“I...i think she can somehow access our feelings- no..more like,our memories”
“You mean you where thinking about those things when she spoke about them?”,Tony asked and I bit my lip.
“I don't think there's really a single moment when I am not thinking about them”,i whispered,my eyes fixed on the floor.
“So she can affect your nervous system- that's her deal”,Tony said bluntly and we turned at him.
“Memories occur when specific groups of neurons are reactivated. In the brain, any stimulus results in a particular pattern of neuronal activity-memories are stored by changing the connections between neurons” ,he explained,though to most of us it didn't really make much sense.
“Brain sends signals through our nervous system,blind lady buzzes the signal”,he explained then,as if he was speaking to toddlers.
This actually made more sense- Tony basically explained logically my scenario about her powers. Well,if it is the brain she's affecting,then this means we can't really trust anything- not the things we see,the things we touch,we smell...
There must be a way to go to her,somehow,without having to lean on our brains..But that...That's almost crazy,we can't not trust our own brains- one's brain is their own fundamental,the control system. Where our plans originate from,our own very thinking process.. How could we possibly...
“You're cooking something”,Tony suddenly said. “Aren't you?”
“Yeah..”,i admitted hesitantly. “But you're not gonna like it”
I am a woman of many virtues,as some things go,though thinking things through...yeah,not really one of them.
We could communicate with our elements' guides through many ways; they would come to us in dreams,in random thoughts,as faint voices echoing in our soul.
But it wasn't a two way conversation. They could help us,guide us as their job suggested,but we couldn't exactly chat.
Except of course from a few very particular situations.
To call one's guide is to be in extreme danger. Although i've heard and in some cases even seen Kalios in my mind,i only actually saw him standing beside me only once.
Three years ago,after the Seetheerist Veela put that scar on my chest; I was bleeding non stop,my entire body was covered in red liquid.
I was sweating more than I ever have before,and I was cold. So,so cold,as if every inch of warmth had exited my body completely.
I was..nearly dead.
“For the record”,Natasha said as she turned off the tap. “I do not think this is a good idea”
I began undressing,seeing how the bath tub wall now filled with cold water. Natasha was giving a concerned look as Tony was humming something,standing by the door.
“For the record,i never said it was”,i tried to make a joke,though nobody laughed.
“Scratch good idea”,Tony butted in, “it's mental”
I tried unhooking my bra,now being in my underwear,but Steve stopped me.
“I don't really think that's necessary”,he said in a low voice and I couldn't help but feel..uneasy. “And..i don't think this is a good idea either,Pearse”
“I never asked,Rogers”,i said,my voice coming out stingy.
Steve seemed like he gulped down a word,but nevertheless,he didn't say anything more. Barton plugged the hair dryer,his eyes hesitant as he looked at me. I tried to pull off a smile,but I couldn't really do it.
I put my one leg inside,the water was so cold that I felt chills running up and down my entire skin. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't afraid. That this isn't a really,really bad idea.
But,you see,i'm rather desperate at the moment.
“Got the shot Playboy?”,i turned to a rather nervous Tony.
“You know,we could at least go to one of my facilities. The controlling issue would put me at some ease,your death rate would go down,y'know,but that's just me”
“Don't got time for that i'm afraid....kinda hoping I could have Thunder boy do this for me”,i chuckled and Tony followed with a much more bitter one.
I let my body fall completely in the tub,the water covering me. I started trembling,the coldness reaching my bones.
“Are you sure about that Pearse?”,Steve was bent forwards,his arms resting on the tub as he spoke in a low voice.
“Stop calling me that already”,i murmured and he let out an awkward smile.
“Right. Sorry. Just...come back, alright?”,he asked,his eyes pleading and I couldn't really bring myself to answer him.
“Aight; let's get this over with”,Barton came closer,the hair dryer hanging from his arm,and Steve let out a huff as he went back.
“I feel like i'm in a cult..”,Tony mumbled. “Okay,Legolas over here drops the hair dryer in,avatar kid speaks with her imaginative friend and all,they catch up- and we bringherback. Got it?”,he turned to each and every one of us.
We were supposed to say something,but all we could manage was a faint nod.
Barton locked eyes with me,as if he was searching for some sort of validation; I nodded again,inhaling a big huff of air. I fell back inside the tub,the water covering me completely and..
Barton did it; he threw in the hair dryer. They were supposed to turn off the source of electricity- but I couldn't spare a single sense for anything other than what was happening to my body.
From bones to teeth, vibrations were hitting me with a violent force, waves of shock making me tremble.
I only had a few minutes; no more than that.
Black.