0.5 ; preface
Scratching along the bridge of her nose, Nora kicked at the piece of gravel which she had initially noticed when exiting the bar. She supposed it had been chipped off in some sort of erratic scuffle of feet, as someone had rushed from the entrance with such incredible haste that it knocked it free from the asphalt. A fact that she seemed unable to release from her pondering mind as she strode onward. Of all things there were to think of as she receded into the ever darkening night, she thought of this and the futility which life was.
How deep and dark mortality was, twisted and sadistic it thrived in the pain of humanity, willing humans on to violence in the name of supposed freedom and beliefs. It baffled her, as she ignored the hoots of perverted males who passed her in their cars while she walked, how it could be so easy for her- for humans, to become enthralled with the idea of life and living it to the fullest, only to have it snatched away in a nanosecond. Perhaps even less than that.
Or perhaps, that was just the philosophy minor in her that was pushing forward this thought.
A deep, fatigued sigh escaped her as she pressed her foot forward against the asphalt before catapulting the stone further in front, watching it skitter multiple paces ahead of her. There was an ever so dainty frown etched across her brow, as she ignored the guilt of abandoning Levi alone in the bar- well, not alone. He'd been rather too preoccupied with the girl who was hanging from his every word to notice Nora slip out and she doubted that he would need her for much more than a fall back plan in the morning when he needed her as escape to get out of sticky situation whose lipstick looked like it was made from the blood of her enemies. Which, traditionally was Levi's type, at least, the type he liked to have one-night stands with. Nora was his type of scapegoat, apparently, her "doe eyes" (his words) made her seem too adorable and innocent to get her into a fight, even if the woman had become a little too obsessed with him and his "dashing good looks" (also, his words). Although, if it ever came down to it, Nora was positive that Levi would revoke his vow to never hit a woman if one threatened to harm his best friend.
While Nora did agree that her friend, and roommate, was good looking, she didn't see what made him so irrevocably endearing for women to want to have sex with him the moment he opened his mouth. She supposed it was because of the freckles and the red hair, although that may have just been her; she was a sucker for freckles and Levi had a smorgasbord of them. Unlike Nick, their linguistically brilliant friend who had known both Nora and Levi since they were kids.
Nora's arms were crossed tightly over her chest as she headed down a back alley, listening to the midnight snoring of the city that never slept. She had been born and raised in the backstreets of Brooklyn, knew the darkened alleys better than most and for a city so bustling with life, it was oddly lonely in the night. A fact that she revelled in. Up until she noticed, as she moved down a small corner, that someone was tailing her.
Now, for a young woman of twenty five, whose entire life up until the last four years had been a struggle for survival, Nora had never once faced an occurrence such as this. She'd known people, men and women, who'd been confronted by strange people in back alleys, some mugged, some sexually assaulted, Levi's mom had been murdered in one when he was thirteen. Yet, despite this, it had never crossed the busy young woman's mind that such a thing could happen to her.
It seemed improbable that anyone would want to attack a poor, girl genius who was getting through college on a scholarship, and thus, she was horribly unprepared when the impossible happened. Because, in all honesty, if something impossible was going to happen to Nora Fitzgerald, and it would.
"What do you want?" she called, her voice withholding an almost unnoticeable a waver of fear within it. She'd spoken without meaning to, his big eyes as wide as they could open. Why had she not just stayed at the apartment with Nick and braved the awkwardness that loomed within their home? If she survive this she was certainly not going out alone with Levi again.
"Well that depends," called the man, his coat swishing behind him as he strode toward her, his thundering voice resonating off the brick walls surrounding them, "whether you, the mighty Raven, are willing to help us."
Nora's face immediately hardened and the man noticed a flicker of recognition and apprehension rupture her features. "Let me guess," she sneered with an insincerity which was pungent, swallowing at the knot in her throat,"Director Fury- oh, I'm sorry; ex-Director Fury. I heard about S.H.I.E.L.D basically being a means to Hydra's end, that must really suck."
Fury released a chortle of laughter as he watched her carefully, "oh, you're snarky for a petty criminal," he retorted.
Nora shrugged, the disjointed images of her past activities, which were nothing but shameful to her now, flashing through her mind in rapid bursts of motion. She didn't like to think about those times, and when she did, it was like watching a movie from the first person perspective. As if she hadn't been the one to do the things she had. "A retired criminal who, if I remember correctly, was a bit of a pain in your derrière back when S.H.I.E.L.D existed. In fact, last I heard you were dead. So, that brings into question what you're doing walking around like a White Walker."
"We all have our ways," the ex-Director quipped. He was secretly vaguely amused by the television reference that the young woman had so seamlessly slipped into her hastily spoken sentences. As if it were almost her instinct to say something of the nature, even if it had no reverence to the conversation at hand. "And while S.H.I.E.L.D is down, it certainly isn't out."
"Hydra would probably beg to differ," she reminded him lightheartedly, eyebrows raised. "How did you find me anyway? "
"I find it interesting," Nick began, his voice filled with a tone of superiority which baffled Nora. "That a girl with an IQ of 187 who has a scholarship to one of the most prestigious colleges in the country, could be so ignorant as to think that I didn't already know where you were this whole time."
Caught off guard, Nora bristled, eyes dancing across his dimly lit yet obviously scarred features.
"What do you want then? The ghost of Nick Fury probably just doesn't appear to random 'petty criminals', does he?" she asked, a hint of daring in her voice that seemed to peak Fury's interest.
The remnants of her time as the Raven had not entirely dissipated quite yet, even if she liked to believe that time had indeed healed that wound. Which was something that made Eleanora all the more appealing to Fury as an asset; someone like her, with her genius and her background would certainly be a good addition to his cause. While Banner and Stark were both brilliant, they both posed their problems that Fury couldn't control, he did, however, have the inkling that the young woman's intelligence could be harnessed in order to aid his endeavours.
"You know about the Avengers, yes?" Nick inquired, looking at her from his single eye keenly.
Nora scoffed, the indirect insult bringing out the fire in her eyes. "Please," she said offhandedly, "I knew about the Avengers Initiative before the Avengers knew about it themselves. What's that supposed to..." Nora trailed off, eyes widening as it dawned on her. "No, no way, nah-uh. There is no way I'm joining the Avengers, I hung up the Raven years ago. It is not happening."
"As surprising as it must be, Miss Fitzgerald," Nick Fury said with a roll of his eye, "I didn't come to ask you to become a superhero, I feel that would be a tad too ironic, don't you agree? Have you heard of a woman by the name of Dr. Helen Cho?"
In a moment of weakness, Nora gasped, eyes widening in enchantment at the very mention of her hero. "Of course!" Nora exclaimed a little too vigorously, "Dr. Cho is probably the most renowned geneticist in the entire world. Her work on the Cradle is ground breaking- to even think of an idea so complex is an achievement but to come so close to doing so is..."
Nora halted in her sentence, her eyes flickering back toward where Nick Fury was standing and awkwardly, she cleared her throat, wiping away the grin of excitement that had captured her features with perceptible effort. "What about her?"
"Currently she's a confidant with Tony Stark and Bruce Banner," he explained, ignoring the look that flickered across her face at the Biochemists name, "and I believe that you, with your skill set, may be able to aid them in their future endeavors, perhaps even help perfect the Cradle."
The naive aspect of her personality, the girl that had long since forgotten the world of mistrust and darkness that was the criminal underground she had once flourished in, whom leapt at the very idea of being yard within the proximity of Bruce Banner and Dr. Cho. Whilst the part of her that had always been wary of those around her, knew not to show too much excitement. She had already given away too much and let her emotions get to her. As much as she adored the thought of working amongst those whom had inspired her to follow the path of science and cease her previously misguided ways, she knew that there had to be a catch. Little did she know as she pursed her lips, thinking of a comment to reply with that would convey enough indifference that would inadvertently persuade the spy of spies to tell her more, her own heart was it.
"Why?" she asked, although apart of her, the Raven, already suspected the answer, "why would you do that for me? I was criminal, I was on S.H.I.E.L.D's top fifty most wanted. Why would you trust me?"
"I don't," Fury retorted, swinging his hands from his aides and clasping behind his back. A small breeze blew through the alley, rustling her brown curls and causing Fury's long thick coat to flap behind his legs, his face still barely illuminated by their light polluted surroundings. "But Cho and Banner have read your papers respectively and believe that out of everyone, you would be of the utmost use."
Trying to ignore the sickening feeling which came forth at the very thought of people like Banner and Cho, whom were living legends in their respective fields, reading her second-rate papers. Banner himself had an IQ that immeasurable by any test that mankind was yet to fabricate and for a young genius like Nora, who had grown up thinking her ability to do complex maths problems at the age of five and a half was unnatural and freakish, had been the one to make her feel like she wasn't totally alone, even when she was.
Yet, something held her back from instantly agreeing, for just as Fury had said, she had an IQ that deemed her a genius. And geniuses weren't naive fools when it came to the world, nor did they just give up when it came to a confrontation that they knew they had the capability to take down their opponent. After all, Nick Fury was half blind and Raven was agile as she was quick witted when in battle.
Then again, Nora wasn't the Raven anymore, she'd given that title, that life, up a long time ago. And now, Fury wanted Nora to work for him. Not the quick witted and at times selfish masked bandit whom had evaded in the past, he wanted the youthful genius that was the naive and socially awkward Eleanora Fitzgerald.
This was her chance, not Raven's or anyone else's, it was the chance of the girl who had tried so hard. Whom had fought tooth and nail to be where she now stood, (not literally, she'd caught a rather relaxing taxi drive to the bar and the walk toward this particular alley had been rather relaxing, excepting the momentary fright she'd experienced upon initially noticing Fury's presence).
This life now, the painstakingly constructed web of her two best friends and accompanied by scientific research that went toward that PhD she yearned to obtain and hair-brained experiments concocted by the trio of intellectually brilliant misfits and lots and lots of fanfiction (it was her hobby and her guilty pleasure to write and read such things). The wide eyed, bubbly girl who smiled more than necessary and worked tirelessly on each project she became committed to had forged a refuge after fighting for survival for so long in the form of a small house and the only two people she had ever truly known and whom knew her just as tacitly as she knew them.
Now, she had the opportunity for more, to reach what the Raven had once tried to achieve. In the darkness, Fury didn't notice the flicker that changed in her eyes, that brilliant genius that shimmered beyond the beauty of her large eyes that seemed to reflect every glimmer of light surrounding her.
It was of no consequence to her that Nick Fury's motives were still unknown, nor did it matter that he was the spy of spies whom planned to use her to his own advantage. It did not matter because she was the genius, who was going to let him do so.
That ephemeral yet absolutely eternal glory that would cement her name into the history books was now just within the stretch of her fingertips. If she were to only to reach out further, jump higher, she would reach the top of the pedestal that society had reserved long ago for her, waiting patiently until she was finally ready to become what she was destined to be. As her lips curved upwards, an irrevocably excited smile on her face that she was incapable of concealing, she knew that this was it. This was what would bring her evermore closer to what had once been so impervious to her efforts, it would make her into more than just a kid genius who was capable of so much. Instead, she would transform into a woman who had achieved things that the world could have never deemed possible.
Little did she know that as she agreed to join Fury, as she signed away her life to a cause that she did not yet know she believed in, was that soon she was not only to meet those which were absurd, but she was going to become one. All because of a boy whom she could never keep up with, but desperately wanted to.
an;
not sure how i feel about this but oh well, i wanted to get the preface done.
if you read my story a world alone on my account @harvelles you'll probably see similarities between nora and the raven and poppy and her alias bloody mary. however, they are both difference because whilst bloody mary (or rather mary) is a something poppy uses to keep the 100 under control and keep her past in her past (which she sucks at doing tbh), the raven for nora is her past and is something she is deeply ashamed of whilst the bloody mary title for poppy is something she is rather proud of, or at least sees as useful.
basically for poppy it's acting, for nora, it's a memory she wants to rid herself of but can't. just wanted to clear that up
anyway, this preface is set prior to aou but following the winter solider shitfest that happened thanks to hydra (ca;ws was the best movie ever tho tbh- actually it draws with gotg but whatever). the next chapter will occur two days following the flying sokovia incident WHICH I HAVE MANY EMOTIONS ABOUT TO FILL A RANT BOOK ENTIRELY ABOUT MARVEL BUT WHATEVER, so be ready friends because yes, pietro is still going to die the way he did in age of ultron but i'm gonna au this bitch and set shit right.
nevertheless, sorry if this sucks but i hope it didn't and i hope you liked it. please drop some feedback in the comments i'd like to know what you all think.