Stand As Heroes » Quicksilver

chapter fifteen

15 x on to the next disaster

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[ FORTY THREE HOURS LEFT ]

[ Third Person POV ]

The entire medical wing wasn't ruined, but the lab that Megan had been in was pretty thoroughly demolished. Nobody paid that much attention to it though; there weren't any civilians around who would care.

Tony pretty much ran through the blackened doorway. He only slowed when he saw everyone standing around where the exam table was. Every step he took closer felt mechanic; he was terrified of the idea of losing one of the kids.

It was as he realized that there was nothing where the table used to be that everyone else saw him. He felt tears starting to build in his eyes at the implication, but then he saw that no one else looked upset or mournful.

He opened his mouth to ask, yet again, what had happened, but he didn't get the chance.

"Can I have some actual clothes? That aren't a towel?"

Everyone turned at Megan's voice in time to see her rounding a corner with Wanda. Wanda had an arm around her, and Megan had a tight grip on the towel that was currently wrapped around her middle. Aside from the fact that she was, evidently, naked (though covered adequately by the towel), and her eyes looked caught somewhere between gold and brown, she looked ... perfectly fine.

Tony laughed in spite of himself. "You can have anything you want, shortstop."

Before she could be stopped, Megan tore herself from Wanda and threw herself at Tony, who by some miracle caught her.

He breathed a sigh of relief as he gave her a hug. Her body felt like it was its usual hotter-than-human temperature without rendering her untouchable. When she withdrew, he let her. "You feeling up to bat?"

"The baseball references are never ending with you, huh?" Megan asked with a laugh. "Yeah, I think I'm good, now." She turned and flashed Doctor Strange a surprisingly genuine smile. "Thanks for helping them."

Doctor Strange did something between a nod and a bow. "Of course. Thank you for not incinerating us."

Megan's cheeks turned red at that and her gaze dropped. Jane stepped up and gave her a quick hug while whispering something that everyone else missed, but that seemed to encourage Megan. She turned and smiled and nodded at Jane before she allowed Wanda to wrap an arm around her again.

Wanda grinned at all of them and squeezed Megan's shoulder. "Come, let's go get you dressed."

"Somebody ..." Megan almost stumbled this time when she started to walk, but she latched onto Wanda's shirt before she could fall. She gave a shaky sigh. "Somebody please tell my boyfriend that I'm not dead." Then, as Wanda led her past her little audience, she smiled slightly. "And thank you," she said, just a little quieter.

Everyone in the room was smiling, even after Megan and Wanda had left.

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"Where is Pietro?" Jane asked once Megan and Wanda were gone. "I figured he'd have been hovering around her the entire time."

Doctor Strange shook his head. "His sister told him it was too dangerous, and evidently he listens to her."

Tony half-smiled at that before he answered Jane; "He's with a couple of the other heroes we brought in that are going to help us in California. They're ... young. I knew he wouldn't ditch them."

"Smart," Bruce nodded.

"How many heroes are you guys bringing together, anyway?" Jane asked as she glanced up at Thor.