Age Of Magneto

Show Your Hand

K would have been lying if she had said she wasn't in a foul mood after the less than stellar introduction to Rhodey. It really didn't help that he was absolutely right all the way down the line, either. But she couldn't fault him for it. He was just looking out for his good looking, highly sought-after, sweet ... idiot genius friend, after all. And he was right. For all intents and purposes, she was on the wrong side of things, and that likely wasn't going to be something she could change. Even if it was ... she'd screwed herself over when she lost her temper with the wife-beater. Tony was likely being wildly optimistic when he told her that they could find a way to deal with the Pym issue. That ... or she'd totally misjudged him and he was just getting his adrenaline rush screwing someone that was perfectly capable of ending him in a flash.

That was positively not what she was hoping for from taking some time with Tony. It should have been nothing but the good things with perfectly lovely company ... and as a result of the ridiculously short and not at all what she'd hoped for weekend in California, K was more than willing to go do a little hit on the far side of the country. Of course, in reevaluating her ... arrangement with Tony, she was in no rush to get there. Intel was still coming in, and it was still on loose footing, so the long drive cross country would only give her a better layout of this hit by the time she got to New Jersey. And in the meantime, she was ignoring phone calls left and right. She was in no mood to talk to Emma, who of course had 'just one little request' while she was in Las Vegas that K hung up on. Or the six calls she got from her as she neared Omaha. All of which, K simply picked up and hung up immediately. She was relieved at least to see that Tony was smart enough not to try it after Rhodey's little speech, even if K found herself considering calling him.

She had stopped just outside of Chicago for a short break - still at least a day's drive from being anywhere near the East coast. The bar she was at was a quiet one, for the most part, and it smelled like a decent place to grab a bite and a drink to shake the road dust off for a few minutes. She'd barely made her order before the bartender had her drink in front of her, and after a good pull on her beer, she rested her head in her hands as she tried to clear her mind. As K let out a long, slow breath, someone stepped up behind her and squeezed both of her shoulders. She was instantly tensed, but she didn't need to turn - not when the opened door of the kitchen made the air shift enough so that she could smell who it was. Not that it was any kind of a comfort.

Vrykolakas squeezed her shoulders tighter as he leaned in against her until she could feel his breath in her hair. "You've been causing so much trouble... not just for Magneto, either." Even without looking, she could almost feel the smile he was wearing.

"What brings you here, Sir Vrykolakas?" K asked, and when she shrugged her shoulders to dislodge his hands, he simply ran them down her arms instead and crept close enough that she could see his profile in her peripheral vision.

"You will end this ridiculous affair with Stark," he said with a little growl.

But that had her hackles raised. "And what if I don't?"

Vrykolakas smiled and slipped around so he could face her. "I suppose we can wait and see, can't we?"

She wanted to tell him to shove it - and a part of her wanted to purposely pursue Tony that much harder if it irritated Vrykolakas that much ... but she couldn't do that to him. She wasn't going to put a target on him when she'd already stepped back from him. "Not necessary," she said in a breath as she let her shoulders slump. "I walked out on him."

For a moment Vrykolakas narrowed his eyes as he watched her, and she knew he was looking into her memories just from his mannerisms. "You have feelings for him," he said quietly, then began to smile. "He's likely not outlived his usefulness then."