first ¤ visual reaction

[fe_male]

[ ... Okay, sure. This made sense.

This guy looks like he's some sort of cross between playing it off and being just... disappointed in what's happening. Because really. Kidnap someone, at least make it exciting. Or don't kidnap them, and let them get back to their own exciting lives.

But at least he's recording, and he knows it. He's already familiar with the device, and the third look on his face is the one he's wearing while he thinks of what he can do with it. ]

Must've been a hell of a night. Somebody tells me I've been here already? Must've been too - I've got a usual. Not bad. A little creepy. So spit it out, come forward before the court, whatever. Somebody come tell me something interesting.

Comments

[hulkbusted]

[... it's been a few six years]

It's a scepter. I have it stored here now, but I had to agree to let Serrure and his mentor have access to it for training.

[fe_male]

[ ........ dude... ]

You had to? What for?

[hulkbusted]

[dude had better be the last word on that subject]

If I hadn't, they would have kept it, and with two magic types, even tracking the gamma radiation, there's no way to be sure I would have gotten it back before something bad happened.

[fe_male]

[ pffft like that'll happen srsly this is tony ]

Well that just sounds like cheating. Magic types and their cheating. We should figure out a way to counteract that.

[hulkbusted]

Is it selfish to be glad you're here? That's what I like to hear. I'll show you the containment setup and you can talk to Agent Coulson to get his opinion on the matter.

[fe_male]

It's never selfish to be thankful for my presence. It's a spectacular gift. Coulson already knows about all of this?

[hulkbusted]

Uh... He needed to be in on it. Serrure likes him and doesn't like me, but most importantly the scepter is his cause of death. He needs to have a say in its disposition.

[fe_male]

[ uno momento ]

His cause of what?

[hulkbusted]

[Yeah, Bruce can understand that reaction.]

Death. Loki killed him. Will kill him if your world and timeline follow mine. I'm sorry.

[fe_male]

[ Yeah he needs to process that. Congratulations, you get to see Tony Stark actually have to pause and process something. That doesn't happen very often. ]

But he's here. And knows about the Lokis. And doesn't seem to like them either. How is that?

[hulkbusted]

[Bruce flips through the data on his screen while he waits for Tony to finish processing, but he's sneaking looks until Tony gets back on track.]

I asked Steve - Captain Rogers - when I first arrived and he said that Agent Coulson is aware of what happens to him. I... haven't had it in me to pry. I don't know if he's here from earlier in my personal timeline, or if he's like some of the people I've heard of who are resurrected just to come to the City.

[fe_male]

He's already dead?

[ asdk nnnn processing. whrrrrrr click. ]

Okay, so, dead people, people who have been dead, for ages possibly, can come back to life here?

[hulkbusted]

Yes, and from what I've been reading, you can also die here in the City and be resurrected, not exactly good as new, but not like a horror movie zombie, either.

[fe_male]

That's... Actually difficult to place a measurable state of being to, all wordplay aside. [ aka: 'i'm not sure how i feel about that' ]

But he's fine though, right? And everyone else, they came in okay?

[hulkbusted]

He's fine. He's good even. He's living with Clint Barton. Have you met Agent Barton yet?

Captain Rogers is also doing well. He seems to be from my timeline, but he's settled in with a friend of his from the 40s - Bucky Barnes. Thor left before I came, so did Agent Romanov. Loki's gone now, and as far as I know, Director Fury hasn't been here. Other than Pepper, those are all the mutual acquaintances I can think of.

[fe_male]

Don't think so. Met Bucky though. Thank god for Fury, or the lack thereof. That's too much SHIELDing in one place for my tastes.

[ Although, he is a bit more at ease having heard all of that. He might not know them all, or even have intentionally been worried, but it's nice to hear that these people he knows or will know at some point are okay. That whole death-except-not thing just now was a little rattling. ]

[hulkbusted]

A little Fury goes a long way. [It's kind of funny how Bruce can make a joke and follow it up with a smile that's more than halfway to a grimace.]

We're on our own here, and I'm just here because another Tony Stark invited another Bruce Banner to live at City Solutions and write his own ticket. If that's a problem...? [He doesn't want it to be a problem, but he's kind of conflict-averse and it doesn't hurt to ask.]

[fe_male]

[ Yeah, but Tony's already getting used to it. It's a characteristic to file away and think about later on, when he's not busy backlogged with new information. ]

Why would that be a problem? That's only a problem if you actually are living in City Solutions - you're not supposed to live and work in the same place, I can get in trouble for like - what's that thing where you're someone's boss, landlord, and influential friend or something? There's a thing where you have too much control over someone else. I don't remember what it's called. You should have a whatever passes for an apartment around here, or something.

[hulkbusted]

I...uh... have an apartment here.

[fe_male]

[ DUTY OF CARE. That's what it is. Not that it... Matters. ]

Oh. Well yeah, of course you do, that would be dumb if you didn't. You know, whatever you want to do.

[hulkbusted]

I have a cabin in the mountains, too, if that helps. I guess the last guy kept it for those times when he was feeling, I don't know, moody? It seemed like a good idea to hang onto it.

[fe_male]

[ handwaving. we're going to move on from this topic now, bruce ]

Bruce pad and the Other Guy bungalow, seems easy enough to keep straight. Never know when property like that'll become valuable; good investment.

[hulkbusted]

[Thank god.]

I can rent it out to the next werewolf to drop by. [Bruce thinks he's kidding ,little does he know]

Is there anything else I can try to blow your mind with or do you want to drink your coffee in peace and digest?

[fe_male]

Their very own Shrieking Shack.

[ oh right he has coffee. does he? apparently. he forgot. or wasn't paying attention. or maybe both - that's just as likely, honestly. ]

If you can do it again in the next forty-eight seconds I think you break a record on land.

[hulkbusted]

Will this do?

[Bruce flicks through his files and tosses some medical folders over to Tony's screen along with a video of Luke changing to look like a duplicate of Bruce before changing back.]

I woke up in that particular Loki's body and he was in mine. His version of the Hulk trashed some of this floor before settling in for a sulk. The bio data is what I got from his body while I was in it.

I didn't figure out the body swap for an embarrassingly long time because he's a shapeshifter and his body automatically conformed itself to my expectations.