Winter & Vision's (not so) Excellent Adventure

[reconstitution]

Who: Winter, Vision, & You
Broadcast: n/a
Action: Forest, planetside
When: July 9th

[ This thread is going to serve both as a canon update to post Captain America: Civil War for Winter and Vision, but also be used as a monthly catch-all with prompts. ]

[ It's been a few weeks since they've landed, so Winter's finally gotten over most of his initial uneasiness. Enough to finally venture into the forest for a hike and get the lay of the land. He's familiar with the beach and the markets, and he's heard things about the forest and a certain tree, so he needs to see for himself if the rumors are true.

It's relatively peaceful, and he hasn't come across anyone else yet. He's making his way around a fallen tree when an animal jumps out of a nearby bush and startles him. Winter stumbles back, and his immediate reaction is to reach out with his left hand to steady himself. Unfortunately it's still broken, so it doesn't cooperate like it's meant to. Which means that he trips and falls. Down a steep hill. Only having one functioning arm means he raises his right to shield his head until he can manage to slow down or run into something. Which is exactly what he does before his head smacks solidly against a hard surface. ]

[Meanwhile, the Vision is similarly engaged in heading toward the tree to investigate it. He’s heard you need someone’s hand to hold in order for the magic to work, but his curiosity has the better of him and he’d like to observe it in action first. A scuffle down below his flight path catches his attention, and he swoops into the forest to see what’s going on just in time to see Winter, of all people, taking a tumble down a steep hillside. He rushes over to try and intercept the man before he seriously hurts himself, and in his rush he miscalculates his own density and slams down hard enough that Winter smacks his head against the Vision instead of catching himself safely.

Oops.

The impact is enough to snap the Vision’s head back and hit it against the tree he’d been trying to prevent Winter from hitting. So now there are two enhanced individuals knocked out on the forest floor. How very impressive.]

Comments

[unbearablynaive]

[He looks up remorsefully at the offer.]

No doubt you could, actually, if he were here. It was nerve damage to the spine, of all things.

[You know, like the thing they just fixed with their other friend here.]

[dancingmd]

I would what I could for them... but that is not what I meant.

[It is you that is here and you that she is worried about right now.]

[unbearablynaive]

[Ah. For himself, is there anything that can be done? He purses his lips.]

I don't know.

[Which in some ways is the most distressing thing to him; he likes knowing.]

I feel as though I'm even more isolated than I was before.

[dancingmd]

[Hearing that breaks her heart and she squeezes his hand, the faces of patients she's lost flickering across her memory, with Tasha, brave, strong, wonderful Tasha at the forefront. But more than that, she's pouring all the love and reassurance into their mental connection that she can. Not alone, not while she can help it.]

[unbearablynaive]

[He can't help wincing as the faces of her patients come through, but soon enough her deliberate sending of warmth gets through to him and he squeezes her hand back gently. From him, the despair begins to ebb and he sighs.]

My apologies. I hadn't meant to burden you with that.

[dancingmd]

[With her free hand, Beverly cups his face and gently turns it towards her.]

No apology is necessary. You are my friend and I care about you and this should not be something you have to bear alone.

[unbearablynaive]

[No, perhaps he shouldn't - but the only friends he'd had left at home being the one he'd shot down and empathy-of-a-brick-wall Tony Stark had given him a rather different impression and made him reluctant to share with anyone here. Why repeat a behavior that's yielded negative results?]

There are burdens that have always been mine alone to bear.

[dancingmd]

[She shakes her head, sensing that reluctance, even if she can't read the reasons behind it.]

It does not have to stay that way.

[unbearablynaive]

[Doesn't it? He's not as sure as she is, not at all.]

One would think it shouldn't bother me here at all, and yet it does. I'm not certain I like the change in myself.

[dancingmd]

[Beverly lets her one hand drop from his face, but she keeps hold of his hand, unwilling to break the mental connection unless he should wish it.]

Why shouldn't it bother you here? Just because you are a universe away doesn't make what happened any less real or important.

[unbearablynaive]

[And he keeps hold of her hand, because he does like the openness and if she doesn't mind being subject to his depressive mood he won't take that away from her.]

Because it's become something of a tradition to leave our actions that occur at home back in that timeline. If I'm willing to give Loki the benefit of the doubt despite his previous actions, surely--

[But it does matter to him, and so it matters. Even though it doesn't have to.]

[dancingmd]

[There's slight confusion at the mention of Loki - who is that? Isn't that the name of a Norse god? - but her focus remains on Vision. And while it's not her place to judge how those from the same world choose to conduct their affairs, it strikes her as a very bad rule in this instance, one that's only hurting him.]

Your emotions are valid and important and they should not be minimized or ignored. Anyone who makes you feel otherwise is wrong.

[unbearablynaive]

[He bites his lip--a very human gesture, in fact--and looks down momentarily. it's not that anyone's ignoring or minimizing his feelings, necessarily, it's that--]

I'm not certain anyone expected me to have them, you see. And they certainly weren't supposed to affect me in combat situations.

[dancingmd]

[Ah. The realization hits.]

Because you're an android.

[Data comes to mind, insisting that he is not worried - cannot experience worry - about Geordi's disappearance, and the nanites' desire to be free and to have a world of their own and the exocomps disobeying their programming in order to protect themselves. Then, of course, there is Daneel, with his elusive Mona Lisa smile and his gentle protectiveness.

I don't think in the correct way.

Beverly's not sure any of that helps Vision, but she lets him see all of it, every time robots surpassed their creator's expectations. It is a failing of organic beings that they struggle to see beyond the machinery of artificial lifeforms to who they really are. She's sharply aware of this failing, has seen it in herself on more than one occasion. If only Daneel were still here... but he's not and so she'll try to do her best for Vision.]

[unbearablynaive]

[He closes his eyes and nods. That's exactly right - no matter that he's unique and nobody really should know what to expect from him, including himself. Clinging to what they know or can guess, both from past experiences with AI and from fictional accounts, had brought comfort to the Avengers. Being a mix of organic and inorganic doesn't help the matter any, nor does the idea that he may be losing control of the incredible power he contains.

The last more than the others is what concerns him.]

Thank you.

[dancingmd]

You are welcome, always. Whatever you need, don't ever hesitate to ask.

[And then she cannot help it any longer - she gives Vision a generous hug, full of love, both for him and for herself.]

[unbearablynaive]

[His hug back is awkward - he's still not used to these things, and being away from most people who would voluntarily hug him for a subjective year doesn't help with that - but it does make him feel better, and she'll be able to tell that.]

You are a good friend, Beverly. I would do well to remember that.

[dancingmd]

[Awkward is okay, as long as the hug helps.]

You are too. Don't forget that either.

[unbearablynaive]

[That was easier to believe before the whole mess at the airport.]

I'll try.

[dancingmd]

Good.

[Her hands rest on his upper arms for a little longer. She can tell he's still uncertain but this is not something that they can fix in a day, so it's a step at least.]

I don't want you to lose yourself.

[unbearablynaive]

[Hah. It could quite literally happen, if he handled the Mind Stone improperly, but he has a feeling that's not exactly what she means.]

I've doubled in age, you know. That would affect anyone.

[dancingmd]

[She smiles softly. It's so easy to forget how young he is. No doubt that too isolates him.]

Very true. I'm certainly not the same as I was at 24 and I doubt I'll be the same at 96.

[unbearablynaive]

[Well, that answers a vague curiosity he'd had about how old she is. Sometimes he has difficulty with anything between thirty and sixty.]

They say age and wisdom go hand in hand, but that's not exactly promising in my case. It's supposed to become easier with age.

[dancingmd]

[She lets out a soft huff at that. Says who?]

Some things are easier, some things aren't. But the important thing is to keep going and know that you're not alone in this.

[unbearablynaive]

[Conventional wisdom?]

I'm glad to have some friends who still support me, at least.