At Midnight

Age of Ultron

...there are no strings on me...

"So what was previously the Stark Tower is now Avengers Tower. They all live there together and have been taking down what's left of HYDRA, working on becoming a better team, yada, yada... Uh, to end their fight and go home, Tony and Bruce Banner create a robot whose sole purpose is to make the world a better place," I explained. 

"And it goes awry?" predicted Mara.

I nodded. "Ultron, the robot, thinks the single way to make the world a better place is to destroy the Avengers, so he tries to, fails the first time, then disappears to make more robots, and recruit two people."

"Are the two people Quicksilver and Scarlet?"

"Good," I praised. 

Mara flicked her hair over her shoulder and curtsied. 

I continued, "So, long story short, the Avengers save the floating city of Sokovia from falling out of the sky. We also learn that S.H.I.E.L.D is trying to get back on its feet. Oh! And Infinity Stones are making their way into the MCU. Plus, the Avengers team goes through a switch up."

Mara's lips split in confusion. "Well, I understood the first two."

"The old team was...?" I quizzed. 

"Widow, Hawkeye, Cap, Iron Man, Thor, and Hulk," she said slowly.

"Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were the two additions to the team. It's also where Hawkeye's almost death comes in. So, they set the scene up all dramatically, and everyone's almost in tears because we all think Hawkeye's gonna get ripped apart by bullets, but then..."

"But then?" asked Mara quickly. 

"The one, the only, the great Pietro Maximoff runs in front of him and takes all of those bullets to save Hawkeye."

"Well, I didn't see that coming."

I stopped stacking the cups to look at her. My lips stuck in a frown, I mumbled, "Ouch."

"What?"

"Pietro and Clint had this joke throughout the movie that was literally the line, 'You didn't see that coming?' It was his last words," I explained. 

Mara patted my shoulder. "I'll be more careful next time."

"Oh, while I'm at it, another joke you need to know is that people tease Steve about the time he told Tony to watch his language. No one has let that go."

"Let's test it," suggested Mara. 

"Go for it," I encouraged. 

Close to theater one, Mara ducked underneath the counter, then, near the line of fans, expertly tripped. A shriek of, "Shit!" escaped her lips before she hit the floor. 

Mutters of, "Language," broke through the line. 

Unfortunately for her, the fall was a little too dramatic, and actually ended up causing her pain. I jogged to her aid. 

"Are you okay?" I asked. 

"I went for it a little too hard," she groaned from the floor.

"Just a little bit," I said. "It looked great, though."

Mara held her hand into the air. I helped her to her feet, hovering my hands behind her as we walked back to the concession counter. There was no sparks, no fireworks, but there was my trembling hand after our hands broke apart, because I actually touched her.

"You weren't kidding about the 'language' thing," she said.

I nodded knowingly. "Anyway, Pietro is dead, but we don't think he's truly dead. They introduced this machine that could repair tissue, and everyone thought they were going to use it to bring Pietro back, but they didn't. They might eventually. I know it will make Wanda happy. In the meantime, she has the Vision to keep her happy."

"Another hero?" asked Mara.

"Right. The Vision can phase through stuff and fly. Essentially, he's a robot. Him and Wanda had a thing in the comic. They're going to bring that to the big screen, I'm sure."

"There's been stranger things," said Mara thoughtfully.

"The Avengers is one of those teams where everyone is replaceable. Iron Man is no longer on the team, probably not Hawkeye, or Hulk, since he grabbed a ship and flew off to an untraceable location. Thor's not on the team either anymore."

"Had to take the Rainbow Road home sometime."

"Bi-Frost," I corrected. 

She waved her hand.

"The new team is Cap, Widow, Falcon, War Machine, Vision, and Scarlet Witch. Now, along with the Vision come Infinity Stones."

Mara paused to check her phone. "You've got thirty minutes."

I looked to the entrance. Ten or so customers were trailing in. I knew in a few minutes time, the true rush would happen, as most people tended to come half an hour early to their movies. 

"Can we do it?" she asked cautiously. 

I scoffed. "Are you doubting my ability to ramble? I think the question is: can you do it?"

"Are you doubting my ability to listen?" she teased. 

"Never."