Chapter 27 – Spoke Too Soon
"If I could sleep with myself, I would," Ophelia murmured to herself as she admired herself in the mirror.
A simple black corset coupled with sleek black slacks and high heels adorned the French brawler. Her blonde hair, normally tied in a braid, cascaded down her back with a smooth pin straight finish. With a thin gold band wrapped around her neck, and her lips painted a striking ruby red, Ophelia Delacour looked ready to rule the world.
Despite being dressed for a party, the brawler still wore her gauntlets on her wrists. Styled to look more like fashion accessories than the weapons they were.
One final approving look at herself, and the Titan breezed out of her room and into her living room, the click of her heels following her.
"Ophelia!" She heard a familiar voice roar as he stormed into sight out of the elevator. Steve narrowed his eyes at the nonchalant teenager as she smirked at him.
"Ophelia, stop ordering shirts that are two sizes smaller than me. I know what you're doing!" He huffed, fidgeting with the collar of a cerulean blue button-up that she remembered picking out for him.
"I don't know what you're talking about, gramps." She lightly replied, hiding a wicked grin at his discomfort as she walked away. "Your old age is catching up to you."
"You might wanna tuck in your shirt though." Ophelia ducked her head around the corner, fully aware of how annoyed she was making the super-soldier. "Have fun!"
Before he could make a retort, Ophelia had already slipped into the elevator. Cheerfully waving at her captain as the doors closed and took her to the common room.
✺
She felt the vibrations of the music before hearing it as she entered the common room. On a normal day, you could find Tony sneaking a few shots of whiskey behind Steve's back or Ophelia crying over a maths assignment at the bar.
Now the space was dominated by a crowd of at least a hundred strangers. Drinking and dancing and laughing with one another as they were accompanied by the sound of music.
"I need a drink," Ophelia muttered as she glided through the crowd.
Atlas, unfortunately, couldn't make an appearance at this party. Something that Ophelia wasn't all that bummed by considering how drained she was. Instead, Ophelia was attending as a friend of the Avengers. Someone they knew, someone they trusted, and someone who was most definitely not a superhero.
But even if she wasn't in her black and gold garb, the blonde brawler still attracted plenty of stares when she reached the bar.
"Tequila. Two shots." She ordered the bartender, looking impassionate at the men that leered at her body.
Who was gonna tell them?
"Drinking at 19? Gasp, what would our dear captain say?" Tony mocked as he sidled up next to Ophelia. His arm thrown around her as he subtly glared at the men who ogled shamelessly at her.
"I fear the old man has given up on me." She replied theatrically, throwing back two shots of the amber liquid as the bartender slid them to her.
"Speaking of old men, why is everyone here more than double my age?" Ophelia asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Are we too mature for her?" Bruce asked humorously as he appeared at Ophelia's other side.
"You say mature, I say boring." Ophelia chirped, hopping off the barstool and leaving two indigent scientists.
Scanning the crowd of mingling people in front of her, the brawler could be excused for not wanting to party with people that could be her parents. But there were some old people she found fun.
"You have half the room giving you lovestruck eyes, Delacour." Thor boomed happily, holding two bottles of beer before handing one to her. "I'm surprised you aren't flirting your way through the room."
"Let's just say my standards have gone up recently," Ophelia replied, hiding a slight grin by taking a swing of her drink. "Not to say that there aren't some... very close contenders."
Her voice drifted as she caught sight of Clint having a conversation with the very pretty Dr Cho. The brawler's gaze lingered on her for a few seconds before Thor's amused cough snapped back her attention.
"I won't do any flirting beyond the usual tonight." She said, collecting herself as her best friend raised his eyebrows at her.
"And the usual is?"
"My favourite super spies, of course." Ophelia teased, pointing her head at Maria as she talked to Tony and Natasha as she talked to Bruce.
"I'm telling Barton you said that." Thor joked.
"Ugh putain, I'll never hear the end of his whining." She groaned as the two separated; Thor moving to Tony and Maria as Rhodey appeared to regale them with a tale of his own. And Ophelia moving back to the bar.
Just her luck that she caught sight of Natasha behind the bar, with Bruce awkwardly trying to flirt with her and the Russian looking like she'd rather swallow the champagne flute in her hand.
"Oh, that is tragic." Ophelia giggled at the hopeless situation from the sidelines. She couldn't even muster enough energy to be jealous it was such a trainwreck.
Nat's eyes flickered above the scientist's shoulder to Ophelia as he shifted down, pleading silently to get her out of this conversation. The brawler knocked back her beer until it ran dry, placing the bottle on a side table as she moved to the redhead.
"Sorry Brucey, I need to borrow Nat for something." She announced, and without warning wrapped her hand around the assassin's wrist to drag her away. Paying no attention to Bruce's expression of confusion.
"I owe you one, Delacour." Natasha sighed in relief as they went out of earshot from Banner.
"Can I cash in for a kiss?" Ophelia cheekily asked.
"No, but nice try." Natasha teased back, throwing a smirk before she merged into the crowd of party-goers.
Despite offering, Ophelia wasn't all that sad at the rejection. A different pair of lips coming to mind when she imagined kissing someone.
"So, no Pepper? She's not coming?" Ophelia heard Rhodey ask as she swiftly joined the group of Tony, Thor, Maria and Rhodey.
"Hey, what about Jane? Where are the ladies, gentlemen?" Maria followed up teasingly.
The Delacour's attention drifted slightly from the group as she caught sight of Steve and who she assumed was Sam on the other side of the room. She'd never met the man that her captain sang praises about but from how comfortable they were, she deemed him trustworthy enough.
Steve rose up from the pool table, catching Ophelia's gaze as she recognised what had caught her attention in the first place.
He was wearing the brown jacket she had specifically hid because it clashed with his outfit.
She shot him a deadpanned look as he grinned at her obvious annoyance. His eyebrows quirked with mirth as he returned to his pool game.
"At least he's wearing the shirt." She sighed to herself, tuning back to the conversation.
"There's even talk of Jane getting a... um, uh... Nobel prize." Thor bragged not so subtly as Maria and Rhodey looked on with amusement.
"My girl can wash both of yours combined," Ophelia added coolly to varying expressions of disbelief.
"You don't have a girl." Rhodey pointed out.
"Yet." Ophelia shot back with a confident grin, taking note of how Thor's expression had dramatically dropped in the last few seconds.
"Although, your red dress is making me forget how to think properly, Hill. I'm gonna need to take a breather, you coming Thor?" Ophelia mildly approached, asking him with her eyes to go along with it as Maria scoffed at her blatant advances.
"If you'll excuse us." Thor smiled that fake smile that Ophelia recognised, the one that he used to move away from any prying questions.
With those parting words, Ophelia dragged a reluctant Thor to the nearest balcony. Pushing past functionally drunk adults to reach the cold gush of wind they had both been vying for.
"What happened?" The brawler dropped any false pretences as soon as they were alone. Her constant easy smile dropping into a concerned frown.
"Nothing happened, you don't need to worry." Thor's voice pitched as he talked like it always did when he lied.
"You know when you tell me not to worry. I tend to do it more." She nudged his arm with her elbow. Parroting back the words he has said to her a few days ago. "So, tell me, what's wrong?"
It was a muted silence as Thor turned to look up. His eyes fixed solemnly on the twinkling stars that could barely be seen over the lights of New York. Ophelia hopped up to sit on the ledge, her heels dangling hundreds of feet in the air as she shuffled a pair of cards. Patiently waiting for him to talk.
"When I was just a boy, I dreamt of being the greatest king that Asgard had ever known. Loki dreamt of the same thing, whenever we played one had to be the brave king, and the other a faithful helper. You can tell that neither of us wanted to be the helper."
Thor's voice was the closest thing to home that Ophelia had. It was loud, and brash and lifted her spirits in the worst of times. The mournful tone to his voice now crushed her heart.
"We were playing once, a stupid game, one that exploded into harsh words and even harsher actions. He threw me into a fountain with his magic, I broke his helmet and we both vowed to never forgive the other. My mother came into my room that evening, ignoring my sulking and sat right next to me."
""You could fight like rabid animals; you could promise to the ends of time to never forgive one another. But you are brothers, and he will always be by your side, Thor." He mimicked the voice of Frigga as he spoke, refusing to look at Ophelia as his eyes glistened in the night light.
"Ironically enough, now neither are by my side." Thor finally turned to look at Ophelia, unscrewing the cap of a liquor flask and taking a big swing of what was undoubtably non-human alcohol.
"Even Jane, you know I haven't spoken to her since London. I don't know where she is, what she's doing or if she even wants me anymore." The bitter chuckle the god of thunder let out was enough for Ophelia to hop down from the ledge and swipe away the hip flask.
"The people I love, slip through my fingers like water. And there's nothing I can do to stop it." Thor whispered, as if he didn't want to hear his own admission. The youngest Delacour, by instinct, wrapped one of her arms around the taller Asgardian's waist.
"God of thunder." She announced, turning to look up at a confused Thor. "That's your moniker, right? The Norse god of thunder. I've been giving it some thought, I have my powers because of my mother, who has hers because of her mother. Magic binds us all Thor, and from what you told me, not every Asgardian has powers like you do."
"Loki had his magic because of Frigga, is it insane to think you have yours because of her too? In a way, she never left your side." Ophelia patted Thor's arm gently before pulling away from him.
"And if Jane can't see how lucky she is to have you in her life, she isn't worth being in yours."
"Why am I the god, and you the titan?" Thor mused allowed, almost unconsciously changing the subject in such an abrupt way that it left her reeling.
"Titan's aren't born, Thor. They're forged." And with those parting words, Ophelia retreated to the party. Leaving a millennia-old man to sow his regrets in peace.
✺
"But, it's a trick!" Clint shouted out incredulously, a drumstick passing between his fingers with dizzy spins as he waved his hand at Mjolnir.
"Oh, no. It's much more than that." Thor defended amid deep chuckles, his eyes resting on Ophelia as she laid sprawled out on the sofa. Her head resting comfortably on Romanoff's lap as the assassin played with her hair.
"Uh, "Whosoever be he worthy shall haveth the power!" Whatever man! It's a trick." Clint waved off Thor, his face scrunched up in denial.
"Well please, be my guest." Thor offered with a confident smirk, nodding to Mjolnir innocently resting on the coffee table.
Ophelia burst out into mocking laughter, body shaking with jollity as she pointed at the glowering archer.
"JARVIS can you get this on camera?" The brawler managed to splutter out, oddly enough the sentient AI never responded to her request.
"Really?" Clint asked doubtfully, throwing the pillow he was holding at a still giggling Ophelia.
"Yeah," Thor replied.
"This is going to be beautiful." Rhodey chuckled, shooting a grin at Ophelia as she not so discreetly held up her phone at Clint.
"Clint, you've had a tough week, we won't hold it against you if you can't get it up." Tony mocked as everyone laughed around him.
Maybe it was the alcohol, but Ophelia hadn't felt this relaxed in months.
No, it was definitely the alcohol.
"You know I've seen this before, right?" Clint said as he wrapped his hand around the handle and pulled with all his strength, a grunt of effort leaving his lips only for the hammer to stay in its place. "I still don't know how you do it."
"And you never will, Katpiss Neverclean." Ophelia snarked, earning another sofa pillow to the face by an annoyed Clint.
"Smell the silent judgment?" Tony cut in with an easy grin.
"Please, Stark, by all means." Clint rolled his eyes, pointing his finger at the hammer.
"This'll be a dick measuring contest for the ages," Ophelia whispered to Natasha as she snickered under her breath, the Russian fighting back her own amusement.
"Oh, here we go."
"Never one to shrink from an honest challenge." Tony drawled as he looped his wrist through the leather handle to the jeers of his friends. "It's physics."
"Physics!" Bruce rolled his eyes at the billionaire.
"Right, so, if I lift it, I...I then rule Asgard?" Tony asked.
"Shudder the thought of a planet ruled by Tony Stark." Ophelia joked as everyone around her laughed.
"Yes, of course," Thor reassures through his laughter.
"I will be re-instituting Prima Nocta." Tony declared before pulling the hammer with all his might. Both his hands hurting white from pressure as the hammer refused to move. "I'll be right back."
He walked off to sounds of amusement before returning with the detached hand portion of his Iron-man armour. He made one more valiant attempt at lifting the hammer, activating his thrusters to force it up and even cajoling Rhodey into helping in his efforts. But nothing made the hammer budge.
"What an embarrassment." Ophelia cooed in humour as Tony collapsed onto the sofa, lifting her legs to rest them on his lap. "By the way, I've got something for you, Stark."
It took a few minutes of rummaging, but Ophelia bought out a folded piece of paper that she handed to Tony. A piece of paper that happened to be a cheque for just under $600.
"No. Ophelia I gave you my card as a gift." Tony immediately refused, pushing the cheque back into her hands even as she fought back.
"I told you, Tiny; I don't like the idea of using you as a cash cow. And I don't like the idea of taking advantage of you; so, take the money for the sake of my pride okay?" Ophelia huffed as Tony still refused the cheque.
"I'm a billionaire, Lia. It literally doesn't make a difference." He sighed in exasperation.
"Like I give a shit. Donate it to charity or something." Ophelia leaned her head back onto Natasha's lap, signifying the conversation had ended even if Tony planned to sneak the cheque back to her at some point.
During their mild argument, Bruce had already tried and failed to lift the hammer and Steve was in the middle of pulling. Everyone else had missed it but Ophelia caught the slight squeak of the hammer as Steve pulled, making Thor's face drop.
'Of course, if anyone would be worthy; it's Steve.' Ophelia thought to herself as the Captain graciously sat down after failing to lift the hammer.
A hush fell on the group as all eyes fell on the two women who chose to leave themselves out of the attempts.
"Widow?" Bruce asked with a shy grin.
"Oh, no no. That's not a question I need answered." Natasha coyly answered as she took a swing from her beer bottle.
"Delacour, your turn!" Clint hollered from the floor as encouragement came from the rest of the Avengers.
"You're out of your mind if you think I'm moving." Ophelia pointed at her place on Natasha's lap, inciting a chorus of groans. "I'm sitting my pretty ass here."
"All deference to the man who wouldn't be king, but it's rigged." Tony blustered, saving face by dismissing Mjolnir's power.
"You bet your ass." Clint humorously agreed.
"Steve, he said a bad language word." Maria cut in, leading to another round of laughter at the super soldier's expense.
"Did you tell everyone about that?" Steve asked Tony, but the Stark skilfully dodged his question.
"The handle's imprinted, right? Like a security code. "Whosoever is carrying Thor's fingerprints" is, I think, the literal translation?" Tony explained.
"Aww, is someone butthurt that Mjolnir didn't like them?" Ophelia teased, giving a mocking pout that Tony returned sarcastically.
"Yes, well that's, uh, that's a very, very interesting theory. I have a simpler one." Thor waltzed over to the table to pick up his hammer, giving it a theatrical twirl in the air before landing back in his hands. "You're all not worthy."
And as everyone complained and groused and said their defences, a grating high-pitched sound cut through the air. Causing everyone to flinch to protect their ears.
"Worthy... No, how could you be worthy? You're all killers." A disembodied voice crackled in the room as a lone legionnaire robot stumbled on its feet. Sparks flying from its loose wires as it edged closer to the circle of friends like a zombie.
Ophelia leapt to her feet at the robot's entrance, her light buzz killed in an instant in the face of potential danger. Her eyes met Steve's as they both assessed the situation.
"Stark," Steve warned quietly, his eyes not leaving the newcomer.
"JARVIS," Tony called for the AI; his lack of a response was all the more noticeable now.
"I'm sorry, I was asleep. Or... I was a-dream?" The faulty robot was a mass of confusion, stumbling in a circle as it scanned its surroundings. Watching. Learning.
"Reboot, Legionnaire OS, we got a buggy suit," Tony ordered with quiet panic in his voice.
"There was a terrible noise... and I was tangled in... in... strings. I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy."
"Now that's a little overkill," Ophelia muttered under her breath, catching Maria and Natasha each turning off the safety of their guns. "Do we really need to be doing all that?"
"You killed someone?" Steve's face darkened as he slowly rose from the couch.
"Now you've upset gramps, you asshole." Ophelia scowled at the dishevelled robot.
"My apologies." The robot sarcastically drawled, even if it didn't have eyes, she could feel the eye roll coming from it. "Wouldn't have been my first call. But, down in the real world, we're faced with ugly choices."
"Only ugly thing here is you, you lopsided looking whore." Ophelia shot back, glaring at the insolent robot.
"Who sent you?" Thor asked.
A recording of a very familiar voice started playing from the rouge legionnaire. ""I see a suit of armour around the world."
Ophelia slowly turned to Tony as his face dropped to an expression of horrified realisation.
"You have got to be shitting me." She scoffed to herself, shaking her head in disbelief.
"Ultron!" Bruce exclaimed, earning another incredulous look from Ophelia.
"In the flesh. Or, no, not yet. Not this... chrysalis. But I'm ready. I'm on a mission."
"What mission?" Natasha asked wearily.
"Peace in our time."
On cue, a horde of robots from the Iron Legion came crashing through the wall. Their sights set entirely on cutting down the Avengers where they stood. Ophelia immediately flicked her gauntlets to their full form, tackling Natasha to the side as a bot had its sights set on her. The brawler leapt to her feet in an instant, lighting up her fists and jumping up to catch a legionnaire as it flew around the room.
She dug her hands into its chest and tore it apart from the inside, throwing its broken parts as she landed on the ground. To her right, Steve was being pummelled into a wall while Tony leapt onto an airborne robot.
But her sights were set on a legionnaire that held its thruster up to Helen Cho's face, poised to blast her to smithereens. With a low grunt, she leapt to the ground floor and fired two blasts of nuclear energy from her fists. Both attacks melting the robot until all that was left was a puddle of molten metal.
The fight ended quickly when Clint found Steve's shield and threw it to him, destroying the last bot in the room.
"That was dramatic! I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world, but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to...evolve?" Ultron picked up one of the broken robots, a mirror image of himself in his hands
"With these? These puppets?" He broke the head of the robot, throwing it away in visible disgust as he spoke. Despite already hating the blasted thing, Ophelia couldn't help but be reminded of Tony's charisma as Ultron spoke.
"There's only one path to peace: The Avengers' extinction." Whatever more Ultron was going to say, was cut off by Thor's thinning patience as he threw his hammer at the robot.
"I had strings, but now I'm free. There are no strings on me, no strings on me." Ultron creepily sang before the light of the killer robot winked out of existence.
He was gone.
But his presence was still felt in the deathly silent room.
"Explain," Ophelia ordered to a shellshocked Tony as he sat on the stairs, her chest bubbling with insane fury as she looked between Bruce and Tony with a stormy expression.
A/N: The best thing about fanfics to me are the differences to canon mcu. This is a little warning that Age of Ultron is gonna have a few differences going forward. You'll see what I mean at the end. The next chapter is gonna be a confrontation and a witch's thoughts. Thanks for reading!