((When you want to toy with the idea of a villain AU version of a muse, but the RP community is so flaccid for them.))

Ava wasn’t sure she could believe this woman’s platitudes, given her choice of words on the matter. She probably didn’t mean to come across as sarcastic but that’s exactly how Ava took it. All of that forgotten when she was the purple hues dancing on the woman’s fingertips. She chose not to step back, not wanting to appear as if she was on the defensive when she had no idea what this power was. But she was skeptical of what it could do, especially pulled out of thin air. “... what? You’re going to zap me with that stuff and it’ll make me feel better...?”

❝ Nothing worth doing in life is easy. And other such platitudes that guidance counselors love to throw around when met with such staunch opposition to truths. ❞

She'd never trusted her guidance counselor specifically because of shit like that. There were dozens of things that were valuable and simple. Having this lively little back and forth was one such example! Chatting had never done her wrong, and it cost her next to nothing at all.

❝ Ohh, did you have a rough childhood? I had no idea, I wouldn't have been so flippant with my tongue if only I could've - I'm not talking about self-help books and smiling in the mirror to trick your brain chemistry. I'm talking about POWER, babe. ❞

Light began to coalesce in her palms, small tears of violet that condensed and coalesced into flames clinging to her fingertips.

❝ The POWER. Of Positivity. ❞

Ava pursed her lips, pondering on whether she should let that tidbit go or use it for later “blackmail.” Or she’d forget this entire evening to the ethers of alcohol and have nothing to show for it. “You... ever think about having kids...?”

"Yes my lovely child." Bucky replied sarcastically. He did care about the rest of the team but also.... he really did not want to listen to Ava being hungover the next day. "The more sugar the worse. Then you got both a blood sugar drop and a hangover." He pointed out, tilting his head. "I used to be a heavy drinker and wine made me cry the next morning without missing a beat."

Ava chewed — literally and metaphorically — on Yelena’s words. She supposed she was right, that they each had different ways of coping with the things that had been done to them. She was just relishing in another bite of her treat when she was offered the mango juice. “I’m allergic, unfortunately. Water’ll do. ... you have a habit of giving everyone you work with nicknames?”

"I'm told trauma effects different people in different ways. It isn't one-size fits all. And yes, that is a direct quote." Yelena chuckled quietly at that, heading back to the kitchen to dig around to see if there was juice available.

"Hm, there's... mango juice? I don't know whose it is, but will that be okay? It doesn't seem to be expired..."

JUKEBOX: five songs that remind you of your muse !

I. Rufus Wainwright - Oh What a World

II. NF - Can You Hold Me ft. Britt Nicole

III. Woodkid - Iron

IV. twenty one pilots: Heathens

V. The Decemberists - Sucker's Prayer

Tagged by: @paragonrising

Tagging: whoever wants to do this

“Humanity, no. But SHIELD has resources, a lot that they’ve hidden from plenty of people over the years. Me, for example.” Ava leaned back in the seat and rolled the window down a bit more to get some fresh air. The pain was still there but it was slowly subsiding. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve already put a tracker on your ship the first time you landed. They like to keep track of all their pieces on the board that way,” she sighed. Not that she wanted to put a downer on this lovely attempt to get away from this planet, but she wanted to be realistic about their chances. “Heck, there might be one in that device too.”

Despite her attempts to keep her eyes on the road, Carol’s gaze was drawn to Ava as she flickered. The effect reminded Carol of the old TV her family had when she was a child. She forced herself to concentrate on the road, not wanting to stare at her friend experiencing poor signal strength.

Ava’s question drew her attention back to the conversation, “uh,” Carol hesitated, “yes, I do have a ship. And, I don’t think they can track us up there.”

“And even if they could, humanity isn’t a spacefaring civilization. What are they going to do, send you a sternly worded email?”

“Already am. I’d just like to not be in more with the clumsy wya you’re fumbling around. Have you even done this before?” Ava settled back down; his last attempt at looking at her wound resulted in a jab in the wrong place and sent pain shooting down her leg.

etherealstarr asked: “Stop fussing over me! I’m not a baby!”

"Well then stop acting like a baby and I won't treat you like one!" His voice is lighthearted, full of mock scolding. "But seriously, just let me check your wound. You don't want to be in pain do you?"

@etherealstarr

“I’m not very good at accepting them in the first place, so I don’t exactly encourage it.” Ava tried to shrug it off, burying the nerves beneath her by hurrying towards the poutine truck. The honey would still be there after they ate. “They have a house-made kiwi lime soda that goes well with it. I’d recommend it. ... honestly, what made you want to come out here with me instead of... doing whatever it is you do in your spare time?”

Watching Ava's face change colour, Yelena tilted her head slightly, giving her a curious look. "... people don't give you compliments enough." It was her simple take away from it, before her attention was immediately diverted to food.

"That sounds disgusting. I want it. We should definitely go line up for that. Where is that? Lead the way!" There was a giddy excitement in her step, though her head swiveled this way and that - not only as a matter of trying to keep an eye on their surroundings, but also to take in the many and varied foods on display.

"Until you start getting discounts for the early bird special and get to adopt a dog for free, I don't think you count as a senior citizen." At least this back-and-forth was doing its job of warming them both up a little.

"Yeah the living for a century part sucked the most." Bucky replied with a dry voice, it wasn't even a joke he would plan his own damn funeral if it got him out of this huge joke that he called his life. "Great.... We can try those another day." He sigh rubbing his face with his right hand, he started to feel like a dad who didn't understand his kid's newest intrest again. A feeling that seemed to happen awfully often working with the Thunderbolts. "It is if you throw a thermos at the head of a elderly citizen."

“This is what I’ve learned is called... a ‘resting bitch face.’ Like it?” She took a big bite out of the Ho-Ho, relishing the fake chocolate flavour and ignoring the crumbs in her lap. “Which would make things more interesting for you?”

"Maybe a little bit of both." Billy gives a small shrug and smiles as he takes one of the snack cakes. "So, you in a bad mood or just scowling for fun?" He takes a bite out of the Ho-Ho while waiting on an answer.

"Okay, dad," Ava replied with a somewhat derisive tone. "Look at you giving a shit." She spat out the last word with such hostility that wasn't at all intended for him. "... you're right, though. I'm already feeling weepy and I don't need it getting worse. ... how much worse can a hangover get?"

"I think you've drank enough for tonight huh? We'll take the cocktails another day." Bucky pointed out, nodding towards the bottle Ava was holding. He really wouldn't have been mad over cocktails instead of something that tasted like you could clean the floor..... But Ava didn't seem to need more right now. "Would be stupid to just give you something that's give you even worse of a hangover."

"Fun, maybe, but not the easiest." If she had to have someone else tell her to smile and she would feel a lot better, she'd punch them in the trachea and leave them for dead. There was no point in optimism if it was empty. Ava's brows furrowed at the woman's words. "It's funny you say that, as if I haven't tried. As if I haven't been beaten down every time I've tried. That kind of conditioning isn't something you can just shake off like a layer of dust, Miss...?" She still hadn't gotten the woman's name.

@apothekosm

❝ Everyone's so mired in doom and gloom these days... It's sickening, actually. Especially when optimism is unequivocally more fun. ❞ Some people called her Delusional. They called her... mad, decried that she was losing touch, slipping the bonds of sanity. All very fanciful ways of saying that people just didn't see the bright sides of things anymore.

She'd get Caspar to see that fabled bright side of things. Even if it cost Ava what little remained of her presence on the material plane.

❝ It's easy to mock the power of positivity. Giving it a chance to better you, though? That takes real strength. Something I, mistakenly it would seem, thought you had in spades. ❞

"Yeah. I've seen the pictures. It pretty much looked unbrushed back then too." Ava gestured for him to pause in his brushing for a second, fingers testing her scalp to make sure there wasn't any bleeding. "Maybe we should give up on the brush and try a comb instead? Work from the ends in?"

"I'll be carefull." He sigh, he tried to be carefull but there was a surpricingly many knots in Ava's hair right now. And that came from the man who used to look like he sleept on the ground. "Forget i used to have long hair?" Bucky asked dryly.

“I’ve heard a lot about you. From everyone.” Natasha seemed to have touched a lot of people around here, though Ava had no idea why. “It’s... almost like you’re famous.”

That had just been a educated guess from the kind of people that Yelena tended to find and keep around. "That would be me yes......" Natasha nodded slowly as she watched the woman. A lot of the thunderbolts made her a bit.... skeptical. "I'm her sister."

@battletrio: x

Ava was never the one to provide comfort when it came to moments of turmoil. That was usually reserved for someone like Alexei... who took absolutely nothing seriously. So for John to come to her, of all people, and pour himself onto her like this, trembling like a newborn in the snow, it left her completely unprepared. So she asked herself: what would Scott do? “I... wish I could. Tell me what I can do to help. To make it all stop.” Cool hands rested on his shoulders as she slowly dragged them both to the ground to make this easier. And to lessen the blow should he faint during all this. “I want to help.”

((Ava strikes again))