DANCE MYSELF TO DEATH

Natasha started, turning to eye the god. It had been a few years since she's seen him and she still couldn't get the image of him defeated and cratered into the floor out of her head.

It was a good day. "Or have we put that behind us?"

"I think we could handle ourselves. Thank you."

The agent smirked, finding the conversation to be quite entertaining for what it is. She didn't consider him a threat. At least not without given reason.

"What are you up to? Seeing the sights you missed out on last time? They're not as picturesque while on fire."

Part II An assortment of prompts taken from the movie Nimona on Netflix. Adjust as necessary to fit pronoun and/or descriptor. Reblog, please do not repost or add.

“ Can you just be you, please? ”

“ Should've just stayed in jail. ”

“ You knew him better than anyone. ”

“ Remember who you are. ”

“ Your plan sucks, and it's boring. ”

“ We are villains. Embrace it. ”

“ Stop pushing me! I'm trying! ”

“ You're right. You're never that much fun. ”

“ Easier to be a girl? You're hilarious. ”

“ You deserve a better explanation than that. ”

“ They all look so happy together. ”

“ Let me go ahead and pass that problem onto someone else. ”

“ There's no time! ”

“ Aw. Why did you get to kill him? ”

“ I hate to say it, but you make a pretty good bad guy. ”

“ Okay, most people scream at that part. ”

“ What I want is answers, so start talking. ”

“ I didn't know what to do. ”

“ I'm sorry for kidnapping you. ”

“ You got betrayed by someone you trusted. ”

“ They brainwashed you good. ”

“ You should be questioning everything right now. ”

“ When things go south, I'm breaking stuff. ”

“ Is something on your mind? ”

“ I'm innocent, and I have proof. ”

“ Come on, man. Do the right thing. ”

“ Well, if it isn't the golden boy. ”

“ Did I ever mean anything to you? Or was it all just a lie? ”

“ She has my back, unlike you. ”

“ Yeah. Now I'm gonna punch you in the face. ”

“ I've got you, kid! ”

“ We have to get you out of here. ”

“ No matter what we do, we can't change the way people see us. ”

“ You changed the way you see me. Didn't you? ”

“ So, you got a plan? ”

“ Tell me the truth! ”

“ Round of applause, ladies and gentlemen. ”

“ I don't fight for her anymore. ”

“ Is it ever gonna be enough? ”

“ It's okay. You're safe. ”

“ I'm not the villain here. ”

“ We've been wrong about everything. ”

“ We can go back to the way things were. ”

“ You're the one who told me not to trust anybody, to question everything. ”

“ You know what you are. ”

“ Do you feel that? ”

“ I'm gonna be a freaking hero. ”

“ I don't know what's scarier. The fact that everyone wants to run a sword through my heart, or that I just want to let them. ”

“ I see you. And you're not alone. ”

“ It's over. ”

“ What if we've always been wrong? ”

Paying bills was difficult in New York City, even more so if you wanted a place with any kind of privacy. The bouncer job only paid so much, but she'd found her way to the underground fight scene over time. She took on enough fights to pay for her apartment while not drawing too much pressure from the guys running the show. She fought. She got her money. She got out.

Laura made a point not to speak to most of her opponents. They tried to cheapen the fight with taunts and insults, but she let her actions speak for her. Laura's head tilted though at the sight of a woman entering the ring. The stance was one of a trained killer. It was a stance Laura knew all too well. "If our shirts are wet, it will be with blood," she commented, analyzing the situation.

"I want to make it clear, the goal isn't to kill each other."

If it was, Natasha had better things to do. Backing out of an unnecessary fight wasn't below her. She didn't *need* the money, and she had no reason to risk herself as well as her trade secrets just for pride.

On fire... littered with death. She's heard Gotham was a hell hole but she didn't exactly believe it until she was here and about fifty feet away from a random explosion.

"I bet the rent is great."

"No, I'd consider this a good day." Definitely a touch on the sarcastic side, but also....not really a lie. She'd seen worse. Gotham's bad days were certainly enough to be nightmare fuel, and on a sliding scale Barbara would probably place this at a solid...seven, seven and a half. "And inflation is kind of a bitch everywhere." Even then, she was sighing, tablet in hand as Oracle discreetly got to work poking around at what may have caused the explosion - in Gotham, it could be anything and it wasn't likely to be something as simple or easy as a utility failure. "Mind calling that in? I'm sure someone else already has dispatch on it, but never too safe."

If this was a good day, and inflation still wracked the market, then it was a wonder that anyone would live there. It seemed like a cesspool of villains and their heroic counterparts that feuled them to keep up with their antics. Yes, stuff like this happened *everywhere* but not nearly this much.

"On it."

The Avenger nodded at the woman, making quick work of pulling out her phone and calling 911. She had no reason to call attention to herself, and this what a civillian would do. Or at least a kindhearted one. Dispatch answered and she gave a succient report of the situation, one that alluded to the fact that she was used to give said reports, and it was met with a lackadaisical response.

The phone call ended, and turned to the redhead once again whilst pockeint her phone.

"They're aware. How great is the GCPD response time?"

чтобы ты захотела тепла.

и нежный голос, обращен не к звездам,

а к тебе, сидящей у окна.

и сколько лжи в твоем рту накопилось,

раз она думает, что ты честна?

такой чистой любви тебе и не снилось.

но почему она предала меня?

lines of poetry from a variety of different sources. taken from the first six months of poems in the 'a poem for every day of the year' collection.

❛ i did not die. ❜

❛ i have no name. ❜

❛ i shot him dead. ❜

❛ i remember you. ❜

❛ i'm afraid it's you. ❜

❛ i've done my best. ❜

❛ today is very boring. ❜

❛ you will not succeed. ❜

❛ she looks a little bit sad. ❜

❛ now is it true or is it not? ❜

❛ my mouth is full of stars. ❜

❛ i have nothing else to do. ❜

❛ something's not the same. ❜

❛ it won't mean much to you. ❜

❛ there is a blessing in the air. ❜

❛ i love you more than i know. ❜

❛ who called me by my name?❜

❛ a tyrant spell has bound me. ❜

❛ life doesn't frighten me at all.❜

❛ i longed for another existence. ❜

❛ i sometimes wonder if it's true. ❜

❛ my heart has made its mind up. ❜

❛ if you're ever in a jam, here i am. ❜

❛ [name] kissed me when we met. ❜

❛ today i want to touch the clouds. ❜

❛ it's a fact the whole world knows. ❜

❛ let us march on till victory is won. ❜

❛ he lay like a warrior taking his rest. ❜

❛ avoid loud and aggressive persons. ❜

❛ remember me when i am gone away. ❜

❛ many poor creatures i help to insnare. ❜

❛ do not touch it; it will bite your fingers. ❜

❛ i'm the most interesting person in this room. ❜

❛ i am your father and this is the way things are. ❜

❛ i have decided not to make a big tragedy out of it. ❜

❛ in my experience, people found each other quite easy to take or leave. ❜

"Well... it's nice to just visit for once. You usually don't call me unless you need me." As soon as the words left her mouth, her suspicions for the out of blue visit started to rise. She'd consider Tony a friend, but not one that he'd reach out to just for anything. Her eyebrows stitched together, as she frowned slightly questioning his motives. "You don't need me for anything, do you?"

He laughed a bit hearing her say that taking a sip of his drink

“I’d say i agree but we both know you always look good.”

Even though he didn’t see himself retiring anytime soon he understand how just enjoying time to yourself and relaxing was pretty nice and enjoyable.

“If I’m honest I’ve just been working on suits if i’m honest it’s been awhile since I've slowed down and just enjoyed a good drink.” 

Being complimented by Tony wasn't new so she took it in stride, raising her glass only slightly and giving him a sly wink.

"How many suits do you need? Soon you'll have enough to open a museum."

"Well... it's nice to just visit for once. You usually don't call me unless you need me." As soon as the words left her mouth, her suspicions for the out of blue visit started to rise. She'd consider Tony a friend, but not one that he'd reach out to just for anything. Her eyebrows stitched together, as she frowned slightly questioning his motives. "You don't need me for anything, do you?"

Since when did he take so much interest in her? She shrugged.

"I'm keeping busy. Retirement looks good on me."

Of course, she wasn't completely retired. If the Avengers assembled for some grand reunion or mission, she'd be there. But she was enjoying this sense of normalcy for once.

"What about you? What have you been up to?"

"Well... it's nice to just visit for once. You usually don't call me unless you need me." As soon as the words left her mouth, her suspicions for the out of blue visit started to rise. She'd consider Tony a friend, but not one that he'd reach out to just for anything. Her eyebrows stitched together, as she frowned slightly questioning his motives. "You don't need me for anything, do you?"

It was remotely comforting to know that she wasn't here for some sort of mission, but it did little to ease her confusion. It wasn't easy for Natasha to accept that someone simply enjoyed her company.

"You know I'd never say no to a drink." She flashed the man a smile, eyeing his drink. At least there was alcohol involved.