Wither Wings (An Avengers Crossover)

Phase 7: The New Normal

I apologize for the long wait. This chapter is slightly shorter, but definitely moves the story along.

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The thing that Max thought she could never get used to was monotony, but as it turns out, she's pretty good at it. Weeks passed by in a hazy blur of strict regimens and doctors visits. If Max wasn't sleeping, she was training at the gym or having her wings tested or sitting on the couch, slowly eating Tony and Pepper out of house and home. She discovered Netflix for the first time and quickly marathoned everything she could get her hands on. Her favourite show was Bojack Horseman, her favourite movie Funny Face.

Max couldn't tell if they were beginning to worry about her or not. She became so predictable that it was almost as if she was a part of the furniture, but no one dared disturb her. Pepper tried to make Max food every once in awhile, but she found that stocking the fridge with frozen meals worked a little bit better.

She felt like she was floating through her day to day life. Max was kept largely separate from society; the only two places she was allowed to be being SHIELD HQ and the tower. She took to making her room her safe haven, even if she couldn't really tell what she was doing. Her brain felt almost...fuzzy. Max would take pieces from around the main floor and stick them in her room like a nest. She felt almost comfortable.

But nowhere was comfortable. Not for very long.

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Tony stared at Max through the window from the living room to the balcony. She was perched on the edge of the railing, eyes closed, facing the sun. He sipped his coffee, observing her with a blank expression on his face.

"She's been like that for five hours now."

Pepper came up from behind him and wrapped one arm around his waist, sneaking his coffee away from him.

"Hmm?" Tony tore his gaze away from Max for a moment to look at Pepper, making a face at the stolen mug.

"I found her when I got up for my run," Pepper replied, sipping on Tony's cup. "She can't be moved."

Tony shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, there's weirder things she could be doing. Like imprinting on Steve or laying eggs."

Pepper shoved the cup of coffee back in Tony's hands with a disgusted look on her face. "You took her into this house, Tony. You should at least give her some modicum of respect."

"Hey!" Tony replied, the coffee sloshing onto his t-shirt. "I'll give her some respect when she stops freaking out everyone who steps into the tower. None of our usual cleaning staff will even step foot in her room. Who knows what's going on in there?"

"Maybe you should ask her," came Max's voice from outside on the balcony.

Pepper and Tony whipped their heads towards Max's completely still form. Tony set his coffee down on the counter and walked towards the sliding door that led to the balcony. He cracked it open.

"How about you come down off of that railing?" Tony leaned on the doorjamb.

Max didn't even open her eyes. "You're going to say that with a coffee stain on your shirt? Go get cleaned up, old man."

Tony narrowed his gaze, glancing from his shirt to Max's blonde hair being ruffled by the breeze. He stepped out onto the balcony, the cold tiles chilling his feet immediately. "What are you even doing out here?"

"What does it look like?" Max asked.

Tony scoffed. "Like you're convening with your master bird in the sky."