Only Love Can Truly Save The World

(✉ → double w): i don’t think i could. of course, if this world was peaceful, i’d be moving on, anyways. always chaos somewhere in the multiverse, you know? i could ask hawkeye. she’s got a lot more ins with the avengers than i do, so she might know. (✉ → double w): honestly, you’re right. he’d build one on the spot.  (✉ → double w): that’s a good point. we can’t risk them falling back into a life of crime. (✉ → double w): you’d think there would be by now.

( ✉ → Diana ): That’s commendable on his part, then, I suppose. Most enhanced abilities seem like a lot to contend with. ( ✉ → Diana ): I bet there’s some fields where they take advantage of that during the interview process already. I’ve always been pretty good at pretending I’m all right with strange things. ( ✉ → Diana ): Well, when someone is easy to flatter, you get a little carried away.

(✉ → double w): really? you like being bored? can’t relate. there’s nothing worse than boredom, diana! maybe stark knows somewhere? i mean, if anybody’d spend a stupid amount of money on some war game arena, it’d be him. (✉ → double w): true, i guess the risk of a heart attack is kind of present. there’s no way he doesn’t remember us. (✉ → double w): unfortunately. we really don’t deserve it!

That was easier than Steve expected. He usually saw the city’s heroes sorted into categories—the Avengers, the Justice League, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and so on. They never did work alongside each other very well, despite sharing the same commitment to keeping the world safe. Too many cooks, Steve had decided after the Avengers had a falling out with one team or another. To get the chance to work with Wonder Woman was a rare thing, but a great thing.

“I’d be happy for the help,” said Steve, abandoning the prone HYDRA soldier without a second thought. It was just desserts for him, anyway—HYDRA never did see others on an equal footing. The rest of the world, or the ones that didn’t exactly share their vision, were just ants to them. Forgettable, easily cast aside in the quest for world domination. A taste of their own medicine, however small, was well deserved. “Trying to take these guys out alone just had me crash into the Arctic and lose a couple decades.” Was he at the point of joking about his own experience? Steve didn’t know. What he did know, though, was that HYDRA had to be taken out. Getting banished from New York City by Captain America and Wonder Woman was one hell of a message.

“I’m glad about that,” Steve admitted, sincerely. “I’d heard of you all the way back in the forties, you know. I never thought we’d get a chance to fight together in a million years.”

Diana nodded. That settled it, then. She wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to build a little bit of trust between the League and the Avengers, even if it was only one of them so far. One was a start, and she had both the time and the patience to work slowly. “Then I would be happy to help,” she told him. She delicately sidestepped a fallen body to walk over to where he was standing. For the moment, as she walked, she coiled the lasso again. It would be easy enough to retrieve, should she need it, but for the moment, there was no threat here. No point holding a weapon ready, just in case.

“I heard about that, when it happened,” she replied, a bit of regret entering her voice. She should have been there herself, and even remembering exactly how she’d felt back then, and knowing that it wasn’t a choice she could have made, she still felt guilty. Maybe the world would be different, if she’d kept standing up back then. And then again, maybe it wouldn’t. All of the wondering in the world couldn’t change where she was now, she had to remind herself of that. She was who, and what, and when she was, and now she simply had to continue to do what she had begun. “I was sad to hear it. The world needed someone like you back then.” An extraordinary person from within humanity itself might have been able to do what she could not. But again, the choices that were made had been made, and they would never know for sure. All they could do was move forward.

“A list sounds incredibly fun,” Kate replied with a laugh. “Like the most organized I’ll ever be, no doubt.” She wasn’t the most organized person in the world, despite being a private detective, and Kate would never deny that! Diana probably wouldn’t judge, she seemed like an understanding person. “But I guess it would be a little judgmental, huh?” Kate added with a faint smile. She got why people weren’t interested in compiling that particular list, and the missing names, like every single Bishop, would be a little difficult to explain… let alone the people Kate had once loved and lost. Still, it was a fun idea in theory, and Kate was trying to make conversation with one of the single coolest people in the world. It was a little intimidating! Diana was great though, easy to talk to, and extremely kind.

Diana’s next shot was incredible, an insane improvement within a minute and Kate grinned at her. “That was great,” she said encouragingly. As Diana spoke, elaborating on Antiope, Kate took aim once more. She loosened a breath as the arrow soared, once more hitting the bullseye. Honestly, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d missed a shot, and if it ever happened, Kate would be concerned about her own health. “She sounds like an incredible woman, if your skill’s anything to judge by,” Kate replied. She knew better than to pry, she was just grateful that Diana had told her that much. If anyone understood how difficult it was to discuss loved ones, it was Kate, and she was very selective about the people she loved. “I’m glad you had her then,” she said honestly. “Clint’s not very stern, sometimes he’s… really difficult actually, but he’s helped me become a hero, you know?” Kate wasn’t sure how much to share, although she shared rarely. Still, it seemed warranted after Diana’s explanation, however brief. “It was pretty exciting, but it kinda reminded me of Jurassic Park.” Kate smiled once more as Diana took aim. “What’s the weirdest?”

“Oh, I’m not saying it wouldn’t be fun,” Diana agreed. She had the faintest hint of a smile on her face. Normally, she behaved herself, not wanting to seem like anything less than a role model for the League. But she appreciated a little good mischief now and again. Just quietly. The problem, of course, was that she was certain this wasn’t the good sort of mischief. “Judgmental, though, certainly. And far too likely that someone would take offense.” She would have to live with the people in the League for a very long time, unless she was willing to leave. And she couldn’t walk away from the life she’d chosen twice. So, not making unnecessary waves seemed like the wisest option available to her. Particularly when she could make enough waves just by disagreeing with any of the others on methods.

Clearly, the man did not expect Jean’s kind response. She was careful not to intrude upon his mind, there was no reason to, but her empathy wasn’t a power that Jean could control. She sensed the confusion, the defensiveness, and Jean couldn’t blame him for that. Situations such as these were strange, and rarely did people approach one another solely to speak. New Yorkers especially were always looking for a fight. “Standing up for people should be common decency,” Jean agreed. “Unfortunately, our world doesn’t work like that at the moment. I think if we encourage it, it may become more widely… used,” she said carefully.

He didn’t react to Jean’s name, and it didn’t surprise her. Unlike the Justice League or the Avengers, the X-Men’s names weren’t widely known and acknowledged. It was something that Jean had grown accustomed to, and truthfully, something that she was relieved about. The last thing she wanted was fame, she was a superhero because she truly wanted the world to become a better place and not for the glory. “You’re welcome,” Jean replied with a nod. The conversation seemed to slowly getting more comfortable, as always with strangers. It took a moment for the wariness to disappear. “It’s nice to meet you, Steve Trevor,” Jean replied, offering her hand out for greetings. “I didn’t think it was necessary. I was just hoping to talk,” Jean explained. “I’m new to town.” Technically, that was true. She was newly brought back to life — well, a year in only.

The frown on Diana’s face evaporated when the woman explained herself. It made sense, for her to be encouraging the behavior she wished to see, even if personally she felt it ought not to be necessary. They would reach that point some day, where the marginally decent didn’t need to be bolstered along by praise for the smallest of actions. Until then, it was as reasonable a response as any. “That makes sense,” she agreed. “As much as I could wish it were not necessary. I would much rather live in that other world.” Wasn’t that what she’d been working for, all this long time? Clearly, they weren’t there yet, but that didn’t make her any less wistful for that world that they were still creating.

( ✉ → Diana ): I can see the advantages, for someone else. But, for example, one can still mount a capable ambush without seeing across enemy lines beforehand. ( ✉ → Diana ): Surely there’s a mind reader who could help out with the hiring process? Texting already feels strange enough most of the time but the content of my messages is another thing entirely. ( ✉ → Diana ): They’ll have to at some point during your lifetime. Quite possibly because of you.

full playlist on spotify

selected tracks:

light & nothing more - wakey!wakey!      There's nothing more important to me than you      You should know you will be my light forever more

empires - the electric swing circus      Give it time, and these imaginary lines will fade away      The battle goes around until we find a common ground      What's the point in building empty empires now?

If supervillains had one thing in common, it was their willingness to fight dirty. It was what separated them from a vast majority of heroes who were a bit more unwilling to get their hands dirty in a fight, though America was of the thinking that fighting fire with fire was utterly necessary. It wouldn’t have been shocking for the man they were up against now to use their conversation to his advantage, but America wasn’t really worried about it. She didn’t miss the way Diana kept an eye on the sky, and she trusted her friend enough to know that if an attack came while she was chatting, she’d have sufficient warning to fight it off.

She barked out a laugh at Diana’s assessment, unable to keep it contained. “That’s a good point,” she allowed with a nod. Fighting geniuses is a lot more fun than fighting dudes like this.” Like most heroes, America preferred a challenge when she fought. Things got boring otherwise, and she wasn’t a huge fan of boredom. It was why she often went looking for a fight, why she was more willing to use punching as the first solution to any problem even when talking might do the trick. Today, she wasn’t even sure talking would have provided any sort of feasible answer. The guy in front of them clearly wasn’t a chatter, and while his evil plan didn’t seem well-thought out, it was their job to stop it all the same. “Robotic minions are fun,” she agreed wistfully. “Sounds good to me.” Grinning as Diana retrieved her lasso, America shrugged and flew forward. “Talking, punching… I’m pretty flexible.” 

Chair Guy looked a little nervous as they flew towards him, holding out a hand in what America guessed was meant to be a threatening manner. “Halt!” He ordered, voice a little nasally. 

America furrowed her brow and turned back to Diana. “Maybe he did build it,” she commented. “Only nerdy dudes would say ‘halt,’ right?” 

Honestly, it spoke volumes about the man they were about to fight, that there was not even so much as an attempt to ambush them while they spoke. Diana was not impressed. If this was the caliber of threat New York was attracting these days, perhaps her time would be better spent elsewhere. Only the history kept her here. There were always lulls, but another threat would come along soon enough. When it did, she intended to be there to handle it. And in the meantime, there was her ordinary human pretense to maintain, which was a good enough reason to stay put.

Unfortunately, she seemed to have read the situation entirely correctly. “It certainly doesn’t seem like this will pose much of a challenge,” she agreed, trying not to sound overly disappointed. “At least he doesn’t seem likely to end the world today. I didn’t particularly want to avert another apocalypse before at least another cup of coffee.” To say the least. Quite frankly, she didn’t need any further apocalypses in her lifetime. That was going a step too far to alleviate boredom, no matter how bored she might be. A few robotic minions, on the other hand, didn’t seem to be too much to ask for, solely to keep life interesting. “I feel that we should be offended that he didn’t think to bring any,” she observed. Of course, they really didn’t need to take offense at anything to intimidate the man in the chair. He was already quite frightened-looking enough to make her think that this was not going to be a particularly long fight.

Not many could wear the star like she could, Steve found himself thinking. He still couldn’t believe he’d seen Wonder Woman in action. She was the real deal. Some said she was sculpted from clay and given life by the Greek gods, but Steve knew not to hold much stock in stories. Better to ask her, though perhaps not now.

“I think you and I could make a great team,” Steve told her, trying not to smile. HYDRA wouldn’t exactly shake in their boots anymore if they actually caught him ogling Wonder Woman. “These guys have a base down the way,” he pointed out, bashing one of the men full in the face with his shield. 

He turned away as the guy crumpled like paper. That’d be one hell of a headache for him later. “Want to give me a hand in taking it down?”

This was good. Diana had wanted to see the Captain in action from the first moment she had heard about him, back when one war to end all wars had become a second, and another band of heroes had stepped up to take the place that had once been hers and her friends'. And to meet on the field of combat was ideal. That way, she could see his skills firsthand, and while he was no Amazon, she was impressed.

“I’m not opposed to the idea,” she replied, watching the last of the Hydra soldiers fall. “If you’re certain you want the assistance.” It certainly didn’t seem as though he needed it, but this had been a comparatively small fight. Taking out a base could certainly be a different story altogether. “I didn’t have any other plans for today.”

(✉ → double w): not close at all is boring. yeah, any amount of training is good. i mean, not like you can have too much, right? (✉ → double w): might be funny to see the look on his face if we knocked on his door and asked for some gratitude, i’m just saying. (✉ → double w): oh, i dig the alliteration you’ve got going on. (✉ → double w): could’ve gone my whole life without it and been happy, that’s for sure.

As a telepath, Jean was unfortunately exposed to the horrific thoughts of men on a regular basis. She was trained in tuning out the majority of the public, but once she caught a disgusted expression cross a man’s face, Jean felt obligated to offer aid. Not only obligated, but she genuinely wanted to. No woman deserved to be disgusted or afraid due to the patriarchy, and similarly, no man who was expected to treat women similarly needed to resort to a fist fight with Jean present.

Luckily, intervention was not necessary. She wasn’t forced to redirect the man’s thoughts and the defender, so to speak, wasn’t being threatened. Curious about the gentleman, Jean walked over, once again blocking out the thoughts of the public. She sat down across from him and offered him a small smile. He didn’t seem thrilled to have more company, but Jean didn’t intend to intrude long unwelcome. “I just wanted to commend you for standing up for women,” Jean said honestly. “I also wanted to introduce myself. I’m Jean Grey and had it been necessary, I would have helped you.” Her name was often known to the public, Marvel Girl had been quite the hero, and she idly wondered if he would recognize it. Regardless, Jean pressed on. “Can I buy you a doughnut or something?”

Whatever she had been expecting, it certainly hadn’t been thanks. As she considered how to respond, Diana began to frown. This was, really, not all that much better than the conversation she’d just escaped, though in a different way. “I don’t think I want that to be something people thank me for,” she said carefully. At least this woman was being nice. Objectively speaking, she had to consider that an improvement, and respond accordingly. “Standing up for people should be a baseline standard for decency.”

Occasionally in life, you needed a reality check. When Kate was first introduced to Clint, she’d felt that way, like her life wasn’t real and she was just dreaming. When she picked up a bow and something just clicked, allowing her to shoot incredibly — something that only improved with time — Kate had similarly felt like she was the luckiest woman alive. Now that she had spent plenty of time with fellow superheroes, she didn’t quite feel amazed to be spending time with Wonder Woman. She did feel lucky, like she’d been chosen because she’d proven herself worthy, but starstruck no longer thank god, it would have been embarrassing. With how much Kate respected Diana, she genuinely wanted them to become something akin to friends, too, and who could blame her? Diana Prince was absolutely inspiring and to have that kind of person in your life was an honour. Coming from Kate, someone who avoided deep friendships, she loved the shallow ones, it was a big deal!

“This memory’s like a steel trap, I won’t forget,” Kate promised. “Should we make a list? We should totally make a list,” she suggested. In her experience, she’d found that shooting a bow required a mix of concentration and distraction. When she focused too hard, Kate faked herself out and it sounded like that was what Diana was doing. Understandably, Wonder Woman was proud and Kate guessed it wasn’t easy to realize she was out of practice. As Diana got into a comfortable stance, Kate smiled reassuringly, and watched as the arrow soared. “That was amazing!” She told her excitedly. “Is Antiope who trained you?” She asked curiously, looking over at Diana. “Among other things?” She repeated with a laugh. “I fought a hybrid dinosaur last week, are those your other things?” Shifting back to the lesson, Kate suggested, “If you increase the pressure in your back muscles and watch the target for a minute, it helps with accuracy. Your form is good, it’s just slightly off with the aim, right?”

“A list sounds dangerous,” Diana teased lightly. "If word were to get out about who was on that list, it would go to their heads." Particularly considering some of the people she might nominate for a place on it. None of them really needed any sort of boost to their ego. Not that Diana didn’t show her appreciation, when it was due, but there was a difference between justly deserved thanks and making a list of the coolest people she had met. And such a list would be painful as well. It would be far too full of the names of the dead, and that pain did not need to be shared. Putting that burden on another would not be kind, nor was it necessary. For her, at least, it was an old, familiar weight. For someone else, someone for whom the pain was not familiar, it would be worse. But she could speak of the dead, at least, without letting that pain be seen. She’d had practice at that.