HEROES ─ fallen warriors series one shots

9| A School Field Trip

(takes place after between sections 6 and 7 of "Fallen")

Olivia

I usually looked forward to school field trips, but not this one. Today we are visiting a museum, but not just any museum. We are visiting 'The National Avengers Museum of Heroics'. I won't be the only one going on this trip though: Stevie will be at the museum with me.

I see him standing with a couple of friends near the front entrance as his teacher pairs everyone into groups. My teacher is currently doing the same. Steve sees me watching him, sticking his tongue out at me playfully. I roll my eyes, finding a smile creeping onto my lips. He's certainly annoying, but he has a way of making me feel better when I'm uncomfortable or distressed.

My teacher finishes forming our groups, forcing me to tour the museum with three girls and two boys. I don't know any of their names, and they don't seem to care about introducing themselves or interacting with me, they're far too excited to tour the museum.

We haven't even been to any of the exhibits, yet everyone is staring around in complete awe. The entrance of the museum has banners hanging from the ceiling of different Avengers. Right next to us is a banner of Steve Rogers; his shield raised high and his face filled with determination. I glance back at Stevie and find him staring at the man he's named after, his face filled with just as much excitement as the rest of his class. Across the room is a banner of Mom; her head aimed up, with wings sprouting from her arms. There's one of Dad right next to her; his metal arm outstretched like he's about to punch someone.

Our teachers let us begin our tour, allowing us to roam about as we please with our chosen groups. My group wants to go into Hall C; the hall of villains. I already know this is going to be uncomfortable for me, but I don't have much say in this matter. Stevie and his group are going into Hall D; weapons.

In the hall of villains, there are sections dedicated to specific people. Loki has a section near the entrance of the hall, where a large mural of him lies around plaques about his life and his past. There's a video playing on the wall next to his mural; him during the Battle of New York City. There's similar set ups for other villains; Red Skull, Malekith, Ronan the Accuser, Ultron, and of course Thanos. Thanos has the biggest section of the hall. His mural shows his face next to a raised Infinity Gauntlet. Footage plays on the wall of Thanos during the Battle of the Universe. Seeing that footage is crazy to me. The other kids in my group are whispering how cool it is seeing all of the Avengers teaming up to defeat Thanos and his army. While it is quite the spectacle, all I can see is Thanos in this footage. Just thinking about my family being anywhere near him leaves me feeling nauseous.

This nausea doesn't subside once I see the entire section dedicated to HYDRA. This section mingles with Red Skulls's section. Of course in this part of the hall, Dad is mentioned. The mural of him shows him masked, with a different metal arm than the one he has now. The plaques around him detail the missions he did while under HYDRA's control. Unfortunately I've learned about a lot of this already in school. There's nothing more unsettling than sitting in a classroom and learning your dad killed JFK along with countless other people. It's stuff I try to ignore as much as possible.

Thankfully the group decides to leave this hall shortly after reading about HYDRA. This museum is very large, so large in fact it has halls dedicated to each Avenger, including Mom and Dad. Their halls are right next to each other since their stories intertwine so much. Steve Roger's is on the other side of Dad's.