The Mimic

173

Y/n shook her head over and over again, clenching her jaw tight enough to break a tooth. "You play with people's lives like they're pawns on a chess board." She snapped through gritted teeth. "You sent them in blind, and didn't tell anyone anything. Maybe if they knew, we could've said goodbye-" Y/n cut herself off as her voice broke, forcing herself to stand up straight again to stop herself from crumbling. "You sacrificed someone's life, Tony. Natasha is dead because of you." She spat, flames beginning to form around her bloody fists. "You don't care about anyone except yourself. You're on a constant warpath for what you want. You locked me in a cage just to keep up your perfect image-"

"Hit me then. Go ahead." Tony snapped, an expectant look in his eyes. "You're already covered in blood, why not add a bit more? It's not like you've changed over these past few years." He gestured toward y/n and the blood that coated her clothes and skin. "You're always aggressive. You're always looking for a fight. What defenseless person did you murder this time?" He teased.

Tony knew exactly what buttons to push. He'd changed the subject on purpose. Y/n was villainising him, and he didn't like it, so he'd decided to personally attack her instead. She was like a ticking time bomb ready to explode at any moment, all Tony had to do was continue to rile her up, and then she'd be the one villainised for attacking him.

Y/n's blood boiled at the mention of the person she attacked being 'defenseless'. The man in the suit was far from defenseless. "You don't know anything about me." She snapped, her bottom lip beginning to wobble. She didn't want to talk about the man in the suit, and she definitely didn't want to talk to Tony about him. He was spouting bullshit and trying to get a reaction. Just like the man in the suit. Manipulative and constantly striving for a perfect image. Maybe he deserved the same treatment as the man in the suit.

Tony didn't pick up on y/n's sudden mood change. "Oh I think I do." He said with a condescending laugh. "You're impulsive, aggressive, rude, and emotional. You don't listen, and you always ruin the missions." He begun to count on his fingers as he listed everything off, happy that she was playing into what he wanted. "You're a mass murderer, and always have been. If it wasn't for Steve, I would've left you and your little psycho boyfriend in Hy-"

Y/n snapped.

She teleported away for a millisecond before appearing back in front of Tony, far too fast for anyone to notice or realise that she'd just taken over Bruce's mind. And, in a matter of seconds, Tony had been thrown across the room by Bruce, sending him flying straight into one of the concrete walls.

Tony's head hit the wall hard, his eyes almost rolling to the back of his head from the pain. He blinked hard to refocus his vision, though he was only met with the sight of the green giant storming toward him. He let out a pained breath as he tried to scramble to his feet, his shoes slipping on the crumbing concrete surrounding him. "Bruce! What the-" He tried to call out, but was quickly shut up when he was picked up by his head.

Bruce's eyes were a pure white, yet an angry look was painted across his face. He held Tony's head with both palms, just staring at the angry look on his face for a few moments. That was when he begun to squeeze. He squeezed hard, planning on crushing Tony's skull in the palms of his hands.

Y/n didn't react. Her eyes had darkened, and her wobbling lip had stilled to a stop. Her head had tilted to the side ever so slightly, watching calmly as Bruce begun to try and crush Tony's skull. It was far more satisfying to watch Tony be attacked than to do it herself. Tony didn't deserved to get attacked by her. The man in the suit did. Forcing one of Tony's best friends to do it instead seemed like a far better punishment.

Steve didn't know how to react at first, simply watching in horror as Tony struggled against the green monster's crushing grip. He knew he had to do something, even if he didn't like the man. Hell, Natasha would've allowed it to happen. But Steve couldn't just stand by. It wasn't right.

There was no point in trying to talk her out of it, Steve could see the darkness in her eyes. It reminded him of the first time that he saw Bucky as the Winter Soldier. He had to use aggression to stop her. So, just as Tony begun to wheeze and beg, Steve lunged forward. He wrapped his arm around y/n's neck, holding her in a chokehold as he begun to squeeze. "Let go."

Y/n's eyes widened as she was suddenly forced into a chokehold. She kept a determined look on her face, reaching up with flames in her palms to burn Steve, but Steve quickly used his spare hand to hold her arms down. "No. He deserves it." Y/n snapped, leaning into Steve's grip as he continued to squeeze. "He killed Natasha. A soul for a soul."

The pair struggled against one another for a long while. The hand holding y/n's arms down had been scorched, but he still refused to let go. "Let go, y/n." He ordered through gritted teeth, tightening the chokehold as much as he possibly could. "Let. Go." He repeated. Pure adrenaline was coursing through him as he continued to squeeze. He hated being so aggressive, but he was trying to save her from killing another person.

As Tony struggled to stay conscious, so did y/n.

Her face had been slowly shifting from a deep red to a purpley blue. She gasped for air, continuing to struggle against Steve's grip. "No." She snapped, her jaw clenched tight enough for a vein to be visible on her forehead. She struggled to keep her eyes open, trying her hardest to focus on the control that she had over Bruce. "Let-" Y/n wheezed in air, leaning her full weight on Steve to try and squirm away. "Let go of me!"

"I'm not letting go until you let go of Bruce." Steve said seriously, his arm continuing to tighten around y/n's neck. He wasn't afraid to choke her out if he had to. "Let go." He repeated, his eyes fixed on Bruce and Tony. "He's the only person that knows how to snap everyone back. If you kill him, there's no way of getting Bucky back." Steve huffed. He didn't want to play that card, but he had no other choice. "Fighting like this isn't going to get him back."

As soon as Steve mentioned Bucky, she froze. She let go of Bruce's mind almost immediately, gasping loudly for air as Steve finally let go. Her hands reached up to touch her throat, coughing hard as her body worked on overdrive to regulate her breathing. Most of the team rushed to Tony and Bruce's aid, but Thor and Steve stayed by y/n's side. Thor had reached out to touch y/n's shoulder, but she swiftly slapped his hand away.

She didn't want to be touched. She didn't want to be fussed over. She just wanted to be alone. The two people that she wanted to comfort her were gone. One dead and one dusted.

"Leave me alone. Both of you. Go help your little buddy like everyone else." Y/n snapped in a harsh tone.