Intertwine

68 - Fight To Always Be Kind

ALINA

"Hey kid," Tony popped his head around my door, "just came to see how you're getting on."

I smoothed out my black suit in front of my mirror. "Well my legs are working." They still felt numb, but they were moving at least.

"I didn't mean about that." Tony closed the door behind him and sat on my bed. "Funerals aren't anyone's favourite thing, but I know they bring back pretty painful memories for you."

"I'm fine." I turned around to face him. "Really. I'm fine."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Well if you're not fine, let me know." He stood up and left. I glanced down at where he'd been sitting. There was a tiny black box.

I picked it up and carefully opened the lid. Inside was a Polaroid. I'd never seen it before. Me, my mom, my dad, and Tony, Christmas wrapping all around us. I must have been about two in the photo, my chubby face and frizzy hair making my smile look even bigger. I turned it round in my hands. On the back it said 'HAPPY'S PRIVATE COLLECTION'. I chuckled; not knowing whether the photo had been given willingly or stolen. Either way I was happy to have it.

I put it with my two other photos by my bed.

I went back to the mirror and looked at my reflection. There were rings under my eyes, and my cheeks looks hollower than usual, probably due to the long hours I'd been working and the sleepless nights I'd been having. I took a couple of long, deep, breaths. Today would be hard, but we'd get through it.

Bruce wasn't speaking that morning, and he didn't even eat breakfast, but I wasn't surprised. I'd been like that the day of my Mom's funeral too. Aditi was sat beside him on the couch, a massive bird of prey on one shoulder and a squirrel in her hands. As I watched she offered the squirrel to Bruce. He glanced at her, then the squirrel, then he looked back at Aditi. He nodded and held out a hand. Cautiously the squirrel hopped into his hands. They looked at each other for a while, as though they were having a sort of inter-species staring contest. The squirrel seemed to make up its mind about something and curled up in Bruce's hands. Aditi beamed.

"You can stop here, thanks Buck." I turned around in time to see Bucky lean down and let Roara give him a kiss on his cheek. He looked up and saw me staring, glared at me, and walked away. Roara wheeled herself over to me, her jet black wheelchair matching her dress. Her face had calmed down a bit, but her eye was still bruised and puffy, her nose still at a slightly odd angle. 

"He's still being very friendly to me." I muttered to her.

"Don't mind him. He's just," she sighed, "he's still being very protective. What with my leg and all." She glanced down at the dark green casing around her leg. Tony had made it overnight, to aid her mobility but also set her bones. 

"Are you two?" I raised an eyebrow.

She shook her head. "No, we're not dating if that's what you're asking. I don't know what we are." She paused. "Ali, I wanted to talk to you."

I settled myself on the arm of the couch closest to me. "Oh yeah?"

"I wanted to apologise. We left things kind of cold, and I never apologised for, you know." She looked down at her knees. "I'm sorry, for everything."

"Ro, you don't need to apologise. You were justifiably angry, and I should have told you." I took her hand. "Are we cool then?"

"We're cool." She glanced over her shoulder. "No, no, no, go back and change." 

Loki groaned. "Again?" He was wearing black Asgardian fighting leathers with gold embellishments across the shoulders.

"I told you what to wear, this isn't a party, it's a funeral, have some fucking respect." She jutted her chin out, clearly not taking no for an answer.