[log] starting the trauma early [closed]

[redrooms]

Characters: Natasha, Tony, Bucky, Toriel and Frisk
Location Building 130 and 131
Date: Night 135-136!
Summary: A catch all thing! Meeting up, looking for Steve's body, all sorts of fun!
Warnings: Oh boy, this log might be a mess. We'll warn in the subject lines if anything comes up!

WE'LL DO TOPLEVELS I GUESS

Comments

Day 135

[redrooms]

Day 136

[redrooms]

[redrooms]

[They make good time to the hospital. Natasha has been digging through the network, so she's seen the posts of people identifying bodies in the morgues. After the initial shock, it's her immediate plan after seeing Steve's name on the obituary. There are a few morgues scattered across town, but this one is closest, so it's worth checking. Just to see.

The hospital is huge, and they have to enter from the roof, considering most of the building is buried in ice and snow, so it takes some time to finally get to the basement. They reach the door to the morgue, and Natasha stops, glancing back at Tony. He's still struggling with Steve. She could see it all over his face even if it wasn't her job, even if she didn't know him well. Natasha knows, very intimately, what it's like to deal with grief and guilt, and she can't help but want to spare him from this. If they do find Steve's body, she can't imagine Tony's reaction being anything good. And, if she's honest with herself, there's something like dread curling in her stomach, too. If Steve's body is here, what does that mean? She's going to have to reassess this whole situation.]

You don't have to come with me.

[definingfuture]

[It's freezing and Tony does complain a bit. He tries not to, but he's sorely under-dressed for a Winter trek. He's grateful when they finally get inside again. Even though the building isn't great by any means, it's at least shelter. He's already tired when they finally get inside, but there's something they just have to check.

He might not even be there. With several morgues on what maps they have seen (How morbid is that?) it's possible that they won't find the body at this one. Or at all. It could be a lie generated by the Admin, and as others have told Tony, people do come back. His expression is grim when Natasha looks back at him. He feels sick just thinking about going into the room. It's too much like reliving Hell all over again.]

Yes, I do. We have to be sure, and you're not going in there alone.

[redrooms]

[Natasha studies his face for a moment, trying to sure. She wants to make sure this is something he feels he needs to do, rather than something he's doing for her. He must pass, though, because she finally nods and turns away, pushing the door open soundlessly. The morgue is large, with rows and rows of compartments lining one wall. Each shelf has a window, which at least means they don't have to pull them out individually, but it's eerie. Macabre. The atmosphere in the entire hospital is oppressive, but it's worse here, and Natasha is certain it's something intrinsic about the building itself rather than just nerves. She's not squeamish, and she's certainly not jumpy around dead bodies.]

Splitting up would save time. We can work our way towards the middle.

[She won't blame him if he wants to do it together, though.]

[definingfuture]

[Whatever she's searching for in his face, Tony assumes she finds it. He's too tired as it is to worry much about his expression. The strain of the possibility of seeing Steve lying cold on a slab for the second time is mingling with the ache in his body from the walk through a frozen tunnel of ice and the general struggle against hunger and stress. One doesn't outweigh the other at this point.

And he does have to do it. As much as he hates it, if Steve really is there, Tony needs to see him. Several people have said that people come back from the dead. Tony wants to check, to see if that's true.]

I'll take the left side, then. Call if you find anything.

[He says that with purpose, moving to the side before he can change his mind. He knows Natasha is trying to be nice to him, but he doesn't want her to have to deal with him being dead weight. He's just as capable as she is at looking, at least. He can do that much for her.]

This place needs generators. [He's going to change the subject as he starts looking. Pretend it isn't as nerve-wracking for them both as it really is.]

[redrooms]

Not a fan of the cold?

[Natasha heads over to the right side and begins checking each window, not lingering any longer than to takes to make sure it isn't Steve.]

We need to find you some better shoes.

[definingfuture]

I like the cold when I don't have to walk around freezing to death in it.

[He's making light of the situation, talking as if this were all perfectly normal in order to control his fear. Being in the morgue is worse than being out in the snow, but he'll never tell Natasha that.]

We need better everything. Whoever brought us here didn't bother with any prep work. They probably expected us to die right away, but I would have liked a little bit more help. You know, just to give us the impression we weren't fodder to them.

[He checks quickly, almost shying away from the drawers as soon as he peeks inside. Tony knows he's only checking to see that the bodies inside aren't Steve, but each new, dead face makes his skin crawl.]

Maybe we won't find anything.

[advanced]

[He wasn't planning to stop by the hospital, but something niggling in the back of his mind won't let him just scope out the building he's meant to end up in. A tiny paranoid voice that suggests enemies can hide everywhere and if he wants to survive, he better check every nook and cranny.

It's a detour, but only one of a few hours, so it's worth doing.

Bucky stalks as much of the perimeter as he can at first, before sliding in the lobby doors and freezing. He probably looks awful, with a hoodie on over the top of his winter soldier clothing, gloves hiding the remaining metal of his arm. He doesn't want to run into anyone, but it seems his luck isn't in again. Even more not in when he sees who it is.

They don't look exactly like the press junkets he's seen concerning them, and Romanoff seems a little different from the memory he has of shooting her some years back, but it's still unmistakably two of the Avengers stood right in front of him. He freezes for a moment, just a couple of seconds, before he's turning on his heel and yanking the doors back open.

Has to get away, has to get away, has to--]

[redrooms]

[Seeing Steve—almost Steve, just a little off—has shaken Natasha. If anyone else was around, she'd be hiding it, but it's just Tony, so her walls are down. She's staying calm for him, of course, but her shoulders are tense and her jaw is set, and she's on edge. Steve is dead. She knows Steve is dead. It's silly that seeing him, or almost him again dredges up all of that grief so easily.

Her reaction when she hears footsteps is immediate. Her head snaps up, her whole body tensing, but there's naked shock on her face when she registers who it is. He's a mess, he's in his old uniform, but it's him. It's James. She barely has time to recognize the twist of sympathy in her chest at how terrible he looks before he's trying to leave, and she's on her feet, sprinting across the lobby to intercept him. She's fast, at least, and her hand darts out for his arm instinctively. The metal one.]

James?

[advanced]

[He can hear her pursuing him and he runs all the faster, all the harder, but it's not enough. Her hand closes on his wrist and her voice cuts through him. James. Why James? He doesn't know her, he's never actually spoken to her, and it's an incredibly intimate way to address him. Nobody calls him James, not even Steve.

It makes him panic all the harder and he pivots on instinct to lash out with a backhand towards her face. Just because he doesn't want to kill any more, doesn't mean he won't fight. If his blow connects, he'll try and wrench his arm free and keep running.]

[redrooms]

[Oh. She wasn't expecting that.

But decades of training kick in. Some of that training with him, so dodging the blow is like muscle memory, locked into her from a million sparring sessions. He has more weight to throw around, but she's small and fast, so she twists out of the way, her hand still vice-like around his wrist. Her expression goes hard, and she steps forward, aiming to drive her knee into his sternum, an instinctive counter as her free hand goes for his other wrist.]

[advanced]

[He's never sparred with her, but he has trained against combat experts of all types and sizes. She's smaller and faster, so he adjusts his style accordingly.

He doesn't even try and dodge the knee to his sternum, allowing it to bend him double with a small grunt of pain. But he uses that proximity to try and hook an ankle around her calves to knock her legs out from underneath her, all while scissoring his wrists to try and break her grip.]

[redrooms]

[This is off. Completely wrong.]

I thought you said you didn't want to hurt me, James. Did you change your mind so soon?

[She says it lightly, almost joking, but it's a test. There's no reason for him to be attacking her on sight, and she needs to see how he reacts to her mirroring his words. He manages to hook his ankle around her legs, and she loses her balance. She lets herself fall, though, keeping her grip on his wrists and throwing herself backward, trying to pull him down with her as she kicks out at his shin.]

[redrooms]

[It turns out Natasha didn't need to be so worried about James running off before they had a chance to talk to him, because their tablets start flashing the usual warning about lockdown, and they're forced to move up a floor to stay the night. James is clearly not pleased about this, or pleased about the situation in general, maybe, so Natasha gives him space. It's good for all of them, she thinks. She's still trying to process everything, herself, not only the reality of being trapped here, but seeing Steve, too. And the fact that James doesn't remember her at all, of course. It's left her feeling unbalanced.

A few hours after lockdown, she risks approaching him. It's a very calculated thing, though—her body language is purposefully non-threatening, and she doesn't crowd him, but stops a good distance away. Her walls are up, now, but there are some things she needs to clarify. Things she's not comfortable speaking about in front of Tony. She's not even sure how willing she is to open up to James at this point, because she's not really a fan of feeling vulnerable, and that's what all of this is doing to her.]

Can I speak with you?

[advanced]

[He knows that nobody can survive lockdown, but he honestly would have chanced it if he had been given even a moment where he might have been able to escape their watchful gaze. He's resilient, trained well, and extremely experienced at surviving in harsh environs, especially that of cold and snow.

But he isn't given the chance and now he's locked in with two of the Avengers, at least one of them who thinks they've worked together in the past. And maybe they have. He's still missing pieces, still got gaps, so it's entirely possible that she's telling the truth. It's making his mind swim as he picks a location to spend the night - back against the wall, near a corner, so he can keep watch on all directions.

He looks up when she approaches, instantly alert and wary.]

About what?

[redrooms]

[Natasha studies him for a moment, thoughtful. She's not sure where she's going to take this just yet. She's not sure where she wants to take it, so even though her plan was to be as honest as possible to put him more at ease, she hesitates to answer.]

I guess we'll see where the conversation leads us. What should I call you?

[Apparently "James" is a no go.]

[advanced]

[He can't help but notice the tentative kindness she shows him. It doesn't mesh with what he knows about the Widow, but it does corroborate her story that maybe they worked together at one point. She's treating him as if they have a history, as if they're friends.]

People here call me J.

[It's not as if she doesn't know his real name, obviously, it's just safer not to have it bandied about.]

[redrooms]

J.

[It isn't as if they haven't used aliases before, but it still feels odd. She'll respect his wishes regardless.]

And you know my name, I'm guessing?

[advanced]

[He nods, though he hardly needs to answer when it's obvious the answer is yes.]

I don't remember working with you.

[It's blunt, but he has a feeling that's what she wants to talk about so he'd rather get in there first.]

hopefully this is okay?

[inruins]

[The stop at the hospital at this point is more than necessary. Given her progressing illness and Frisk's own not lightening up like Toriel had hoped the two find themselves here. They had spent already spent a day and a half thus far, pulling through assorted odds and ends as they wander through the hospital.

The boss monster covers her mouth barely restraining a cough. When she does speak, her voice is rough and hard to miss in the quiet hospital hallways. Frisk is likely trailing after her at this point.] Lets see if we can find anything to help these colds, dear.

Yeah, I believe we were told we could use this post but let us know if we need to move it anywhere

[despiteeverything]

Yeah...

[Honestly if they didn't find anything here, it might be worth checking the pharmacy, or even heading up to the clinic by the school. They're more than a bit worried to see Toriel cough though. She'd started coughing blood recently, more than a little panic-inducing.]

You can rest Mom, while I look. I'll be okay.

[For all their words seem focused on Toriel and her needs, they still peer carefully around corners. Keeping an eye out for anomalies, and other threats.]

I am so sorry.

[definingfuture]

[He's glad they are inside, even if it is a hospital. The place creeps Tony out, but he hopes that at least a large medical building will have useful supplies. And he's putting off the real hunt, because he doesn't know if he has the heart for it yet.

He hears voices before he sees people. Tony approaches the two cautiously, not wanting to surprise other people using the hospital for shelter. They're probably suspicious of every new face if they see danger as frequently as the guide suggests.]

Um, hey! Don't be alarmed. I'm friendly.

[Well, that makes a great impression. Tony mentally kicks himself for that.]

No worries!

[despiteeverything]

[Or he could run across an optimist and their mom. They might be cautiously alert when he first shifts into view, but as soon as they get a clear sight of him - and especially once he speaks, they relax significantly. Anomalies couldn't talk like that. They cough a couple times into their elbow, before grinning.]

Oh, hello! Um...

[They tilt their head ever so slightly to the side. His voice sounds familiar. And yet he isn't familiar, meaning he's probably newer, therefore...]

I think... we talked on the network, right? The one Admin makes when new people wake up here.

idk what posting order is so, have a goat

[inruins]

Ah a new face, hello! [Toriel offers a gentle wave. She relaxes a bit herself when she sees the man, even with his awkward attempt at placating them.

She does offer him a toothy smile- she can't help it she's literally a giant monster standing behind her child.] I am Toriel, and you've met Frisk already.