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[the communicator flickers onto Sif's face, which settles into satisfied lines. she figured it out, this enchanted metal device, so now she can go back to what she was doing -- which is wrapping her free arm around a tree and casually hauling it out of the ground]

If we are to follow the whims of our captors -- which I'm of two minds on, myself -- we should at least begin by figuring out who is best-suited for what. [briskly]

So go on. [she drops the tree, also casually, and then goes to tear out another. she's not sure how much wood they'll need] I require knowledge of how many are here, and what skills you possess. We will want someone with knowledge of plants to forage, and someone with skill at fishing. We will need a source of fresh water, and likely vessels fashioned to carry and hold our supplies in. Those with strength or skill at construction who can put together the shelters, and those who might construct defenses around the constructs.

And those of you who are more accustomed to living in human cities, well... [a beat. trying to think of something charitable] We will probably need someone to -- gather sticks, and the like.

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[ he -- breathes out, slow. eyes move over her face on the view screen.

he's scaring her, and it takes what feels like forever for him to really process that. so much longer than it would take to process and break down even the bitchiest equations.

he's scaring her.

another breath, and then he puts a hand to his own forehead. ]

With you. Got it.

[ one more breath, then ] So, how much irony do you think the human body can even stand? Me, telling you to be careful.

[ he trusts you. he does. with everything. this shouldn't be different. ]

...That was really smooth, by the way.

[he stops paying attention for five minutes, Tony]

[ no one should leave him unsupervised for nearly that long ]

Yeah, well. I'm -- streamlined. It helps with the flying.

[ VERY smooth, see. waxed-smooth. but there's still tension around his jaw. another breath, deeper and slower. his eyes flit up to Bruce's face. ]

Little shaky on the dismount, you think?

That was actually my favorite part. The rest of it came on a little... strong.

[ he wets his lips. private conversations would be nice. he'll have to set aside like -- ten minutes later and figure that out. ]

So -- treating someone like super-volatile glass, you're saying... that might not be constructive?

[ hey there living breathing reminder of how he should handle situations like this. like he didn't see you tense up every time you talked to someone who knew, on the helicarrier and after. wringing his hands, but he notices he's doing it and forces himself to stop. ]

Maybe not.

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[and, because he was just looking for it himself, you're welcome] You've got to ease up, Tony. You might be right that it's a bad idea for her to use her new abilities, but you need a better alternative than psyching her out about it.

[ still his fave ] [ but he squints at the little notice dubiously for a beat before saying ]

I know. I know. I hear the words coming out of my mouth and I'm like, who is this guy? What the hell is his problem?

[ too rapid-fire, still. and obviously not completely honest. but by the last one -- god, when he saw the look on her face...

he scrapes his hands back through his hair, ducks his head, just focuses on breathing. ]

I sure dish this out a lot better than I take it, don't I? I almost died on her -- how many times? And I can't even handle the one.

Edited 2013-06-20 14:24 (UTC)

Yeah, well, don't blame yourself too hard. You haven't had all that practice dealing with it that she has. [a little gray humor for you there]

[ heh. his lips turn up ever so slightly, not unappreciative. then his eyes flit away. ]

I really don't want more practice. [ hand up through his hair, tugging slowly ] --I was right there, you know? I was reaching for her, and she fell anyway.

[ he couldn't ] [ he was right there and he couldn't-- ]

[ breathe, Tony ]

Well, you're not going to need more. On a perfectly non-dangerous stretch of tropical paradise with what seems like an army of competent people around, I don't think she's going to be in trouble from any bad guys. Especially not when she might be able to arm-wrestle Steve at this point.

What are you thinking? Can we fix the stability of the virus without depriving her of the neat side-effects, or is it a whole package sort of deal?

[casual reassuring patter and distractions "r" us]

[ at first he just blinks, somehow not having expected that derailment, but a moment later he appreciates it.

eager as he is for the distraction, he wouldn't respond so readily if it weren't also useful and relevant. work the problem. just the act of breaking it down in his head is soothing. ]

Think we could get Captain Kangaroo to actually try that? Because I would pay an irresponsible amount of money to see the look on his face.

[ but he's sitting down, and then the next second he's dragging his fingers through the sand, idle nonsensical patterns while he thinks ]

Full neutralization would definitely be worth looking into at some point, but it shouldn't be necessary. [ turning more reflective: ] The body overheats, that's all. Too much energy, too fast, and it can't keep up. But there's no reason it shouldn't be able to.

[ mmm ] I guess drunk me wanted to vent the excess, and that's what Maya spent the last thirteen years trying to do, but as awesome as I am I don't do my best thinking when I'm drunk. [ he draws a sharp line through the random squiggles in the sand, impatient and dismissive ]

No matter how good your ventilation, there's going to be a level of heat you can't handle because you can't vent it fast enough. Better to just close the loop in the first place.

You're thinking about introducing a mutation that alters the pathology of the virus. Keeps it from generating heat, consumes the extraneous energy. It's a difficult proposition. Heat is sort of the natural biological by-product of... well, all organic energy-use. [a bit amused, and then] If the functioning of prostaglandin E2 on the hypothalamus were...

[a beat, trailing off]

Could really go for that whiteboard right about now.

[ your brain is so sexy, BB. he folds his hands and rests his chin on them, just listening, taking it in. nodding. biochemistry is really not his field, but he can follow easily, and it makes him itch for the tech to put together models. he can see the code in his head.

he should've had you on this with him from the start.

it takes a minute before he's opening his eyes again, but then he just grins, and gestures at the beach around them ]

What have you got against tan?

[ nature's whiteboard ]

[hypothetically? probably a lot. hers?]

[no idea.]

[it's a few long seconds of silence and looking some mixture of tired and sad and afraid before she finally speaks up, a lot more quietly than before] I'm going to go find Bruce. Apparently he knows a thing or two about plants.

[ Pepper ]

[ he just -- nods, tightly. yeah. yes. do that. that's fine. he gets it. ]

Can't say I blame you.

[it's not your fault, Tony. it's not really anyone's fault. so much to say to you, too many people to overhear.]

Just breathe, right? [her new motto. small smile, for both their sakes]

[ he's gonna have all the privacy encryptions set up by tonight ]

Absolutely, all the breathing. Nothing but hyperoxia from now on.

[ the joke is also for both their sakes. ]

[achievement unlocked: there's a bit more of her old self in her smile now.]

I'll see you later.

[ he's grateful, but not an idiot. he knows it doesn't make up for scaring her. if anything it's just more proof that he's lucky. but he widens his smile for her and nods.

when the little click of her closing the channel comes, he finally lets himself look away from the comm.

breathing and thinking. that's what he's good at, that's what everyone here needs from him, so that's what he'll do. ]

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