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eastertag · 3 years

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Pretty in pink

@fallenfurther gift for @willow-salix

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Her mobile, which had fallen into the crack in the sofa, buzzed violently. Wriggling to the side, Selene retrieved it and tapped open the new message.

Gordon: Please say you know who did it?

Gordon: I don’t want to get the blame.

Selene: Did what?

Gordon: Thunderbird One is pink.

Selene couldn’t believe the words before her, but her instincts told her Gordon wasn’t lying. Pushing John’s arms up abruptly, she went from lying on him to standing in seconds. Her man gave her a bemused look but didn’t move.

“Where’s the fire?”

“Thunderbird One is pink.”

“What? That’s a joke. Gordon’s pranking you.”

Selene thrust the phone under John’s nose and watched his eyebrow raise. He stood slowly, understanding all the possible implications of such a statement, and together they headed to the lift. Taking it down to Thunderbird One’s hanger, they joined Gordon in gapping up at the rocket plane. There before them was indeed a pink Thunderbird One. At least the details were pink. From the usually blue engine compartment with its white one and the blue detailing on the bottom fins were now the colour of FAB 1. Even the nosecone was a darker shade of pink. A grin crossed Gordon’s face as he started to chuckle.

“I look forward to your funeral,” John spoke entirely deadpan.

“I didn’t do it.”

“Then why are you laughing?”

“Because whoever did is a freaking genius!” Gordon exclaimed. “This is the prank of the year and whoever did it deserves a medal of bravery.”

“More like a medal of stupidity,” countered John, “if we get a rescue and Scott has to fly with One like this, all hell will break loose.”

“Should we tell him?” Selene asked, wondering if she should message her best friend or not.

“Be my guest,” Gordon responded cheerfully, phone in hand and snapping evidence of the crime. John wandered up to the Thunderbird, a frown of thought on his face. Selene followed, watching her man’s every move as he scrutinised the pink stripes. He opened his mouth to speak.

“What on earth? Who did that? What the hell is going on?”

Scott’s voice went from surprise to anger as he stormed up behind them. His fists were clenched and shaking. They all cared deeply for their individual craft and this was a complete violation of his. Had someone painted Thunderbird Four a new colour, Gordon would be just as furious.

“It’s not as bad as it looks.”

“Not as bad as it looks!?” Scott spat at John. “Thunderbird One is PINK! How would you like it if I painted Thunderbird Five pink?”

“I would like to see you try that, and it’s not like anyone sees Thunderbird Five that often.”

A growl came from the eldest Tracy, though John didn’t flinch. He knew even, as Scott was going red with fury, his brother was not a threat, so he continued to be the voice of reason.

“It appears to be a simple wrap, probably designed to be temporary.”

“I jolly well hope so.”

Selene just observed as Scott stormed off to the side of the hanger towards the adjustable platform. He jumped up into the driving seat and moved it up to his Thunderbird. Climbing on, he raised it so he could examine the damage. His hand reached out and stroked the darker pink hexagons that surrounded her white one, the hurt in his eyes clear to all. John shook his head, while Gordon sniggered to her left. No doubt the man was snapping more photos. Scott rose higher and let himself into the belly of his ship.

“On no! They are SO dead.”

The anguished voice from inside the Thunderbird had Gordon running past to call the platform down. Selene and John were right on his heels, climbing up and being raised above the ground. She was thankful the closest one had been the lift with the guard rail, as she held on tight. Carefully stepping into Thunderbird One the reason for the cursing became clear. Everything that had been blue was now pink. Even Scott’s seat, which he had climbed up to like a monkey, had been sprayed pale pink with deep pink cushions. Selene bit her lip to fight the grin, though Gordon just collapsed in peels of laughter.

“Incredible,” John gawked from her side. “I’m impressed by the effort they’ve gone to, though this definitely screams Brains’ handiwork. I suggest finding him to ascertain the best way to remove it all.”

Selene herself was struggling to take in the dramatic colour change. It was like being in a completely different vehicle. It was almost like Penelope had come in and redecorated to her tastes and claimed it as her own. The blue figure of Scott above them looked very much out of place in his own Thunderbird. The man jumped down before her, a frown creasing his forehead. He slipped a hand under Gordon’s elbow, lifting the crying man to his feet.

“Good idea, John. The sooner this is sorted the better.”

They watched the commander drag Gordon out, who was trying to dry his eyes and snap a few more photos at the same time.

“If you could keep those photos off social media, I’d be very grateful.”

“Hey!” Gordon yelped as he was dropped onto the platform bed. “The world has a every right to see these. They are golden!”

“I promise they won’t be released today, however Gordon has got a point. If released at the correct time, they could be invaluable.”

Selene looped her arm through John’s as they followed after the grumbling Scott, carefully stepping onto the platform. She did snap a quick photo for herself, just in case, knowing that John would have Gordon’s photos saved somewhere safe soon enough, which she could just ask to see. The platform lowered smoothly, and they clambered down the ladder. Scott decided the ladder was too slow and threw himself athletically over the rail to the floor. He started running only to grind to a halt when Sally rounded the corner with a pink baldric in hand.

“There you are Scott,” the wise woman smiled, “I’ve been looking for you all over. I need you ready to launch in the next half hour otherwise we’ll be late.”

Selene joined the men around her in shock. Not one of them had considered Sally would be culprit. The woman was a plotter and mischievous, but this took the biscuit.

“You did THAT?” Gordon gawked; arm thrown high in the direction of the Thunderbird.

“With Brains’ help, yes.”

“I’m not launching Thunderbird One until it’s all removed.”

Scott’s eyebrows knitted together as he crossed his arms. Sally didn’t falter, passing a data pad to Scott as she passed.

“Yes, you will. I just have to pack this, then we can launch.”

Gordon stared after his Grandma his wide brown eyes full of a newfound respect for the matriarch. John peered over Scott’s shoulder, reading whatever was meant to convince Scott the Thunderbird One needed to be pink. The man’s tense body slumped with a sigh.

“Don’t you dare call me out for a rescue or I’ll disable the bagel machine on Five AND ensure none make it safely to the island for the next month.”

John raised an eyebrow, and his emerald eyes glinted as a sly smile crossed his face.

“You know I can’t promise that.”

“I’m taking the second seat. I cannot miss this for the world.”

Gordon gleefully ran towards the stairs up to the changing rooms and docking area. The colour slowly drained from Scott’s face as he realised that having Gordon there would be worse than being called out on a rescue. Selene could almost here the jokes and puns Gordon would rain over Scott.

“No way. You are not coming.”

Scott shouted after the aquanaut, who had just lept up the first few steps. Gordon threw himself onto the handrail, cupped his hand to his mouth and bellowed.

“Grandma! Can I come?”

“It’s up to Scott who can come along, but I believe you are on standby for rescues.”

“John’s here. He can take my place.” Gordon latched the eldest Tracy and brought out the puppy eyes, “Please, Scott. Let me come along.”

“No.” The commander was back, standing straight and certain, “The only person who I will allow to come is Selene.”

“Sure, I’m in.”

Selene gave Scott an appreciative smile. She intended to make the most of this opportunity, as Thunderbird One would be reverted back to her original colours the moment she returned. A dimpled grin of gratitude was sent back.

“I need to go suit up. I’ll see you inside.”

The man jogged off towards the elevator, while John held the tablet out before her. Taking it, she scrolled through an email exchange that had occurred over the past few days. It was the first email that tugged her heartstrings and explained Scott’s quick change of tune.

Dear Make-a-wish,

My name in Leanne Darcy Brown. I am ten years old, and I have incurable medulloblastoma. I am having chemotherapy to help prolong my life so I can do as many things as I can, but I don’t have much time left. I have always loved planes and wanted to be a pilot. I have been to many air shows and love sitting in the cockpits of the planes they have on display.

My wish is to fly in Thunderbird One. It is my favourite of the Thunderbirds as it is the fastest, and it would be awesome to go at top speed in it. Although, if I was the pilot of Thunderbird One it would be pink and not blue, as pink is a much better colour. I know this might not be possible as Thunderbird One needs to be ready to help people, so my other wish is to go up in a stunt plane and do loop-the-loop, and other cool tricks.

Thank you,

Leanne

Selene blinked as John pulled her into his chest, resting his chin on her head. She rested her cheek against his shoulder and grounded herself, letting the world settle to the sound of John’s heartbeat.

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

John’s voice was soft as his brushed against her ear. Twisting, Selene gazed up into his dazzling eyes and smiled. They both knew she would be going; she always went when she was need, and Scott would need her. The boys did charity events whenever they could, doing their best to spread hope and raise money to help those less fortunate. They experienced losses on rescues, each having people that held on longer than others, but at least they had tried to save them. Sometimes meeting the people they could do nothing for, despite all their resources, could be tough. Sally climbed down from the lift and set it moving to its original position, before heading towards them.

“Shall we get going?”

John pressed his lips to her forehead, and she stole a quick kiss, before breaking apart. Selene looped arms with the matriarch, and they headed towards the changing rooms. The spare seats for One were already in position for them, so they climbed in and allowed the mechanism to load them into the ship. Moments after they clicked into place, Scott’s chair extended out to collect him.

“Everyone ready?”

Scott glanced over his shoulder as Thunderbird One ascended to her launch station in silence.

“We’re A-okay back here. You just worry about getting to those coordinates on time.”

Sally chimed from beside her, clearly happy to be flying. There was a speed demon in her. The woman was buzzing, arms shaking slightly.

“It’s turned out perfectly, hasn’t it?”

“It definitely meets her pink dream.”

“Brains’ has done a fantastic job on such short notice. I was behind on the inbox, which I always regret as it means I miss emails such as these. When I saw it, I knew just had to do something. Brains was with me at the time. It was his suggestion that we make Thunderbird One pink for the day. He told me to just arrange it all timing wise and leave Thunderbird One to him. That man is a genus.

“You could have given me a warning, Grandma.”

Sally just waved away her grandson’s comments like an annoying fly, making Selene laugh.

“So why is today so important?”

“Oh, the foundation managed to secure Leanne on a stunt plane flight, so they’ll be at an airfield making all the clearances needed simple. The airfield was happy to accommodate us despite the short notice. Leanne is also taking a turn for the worst, her mobility is becoming poor to the point that she’s struggling to walk, and she’s on a fair amount of medication to keep her comfortable. It’s starting to become a now or never situation. The poor dear. Hopefully this will give her a day to remember.”

Selene reached out and held Sally’s hand as she wiped a tear from her eye. The doctor part of her must understand what’s going on with the child. Rubbing circles on the woman’s skin, there was a lot to marvel. The woman’s determination and care, efficiency and resolve. She had brought a girl’s dream into reality, and it was fantastic. Even if Selene didn’t appreciate pink as much as Lady Penelope, she could appreciate how Brains had used two shades to keep all the small details of the ship, including the logos and warnings located about them. The Thunderbird slowed and Scott landed effortlessly. They all disembarked onto the tarmac, where two suited ladies awaited with their wide eyes on the ship. Their name badges read Kaia and Dakota.

“Welcome and thank you for your response and generosity. May I be the first to say Thunderbird One looks incredible.”

“I’m sorry it was such a late response. This is Scott and Selene.”

There were handshakes all round before they were led into the nearby hanger and escorted into one of the offices. Selene quickly spotted Leanne, dressed in an International Rescue blue flight suit, chatting away to a woman in a similar, but white, flight suit. There was a spread of food and drink beside them, and there were three other adults standing to the side of the room. The couple with teary eyes and smiling warmly at the child were Leanne’s parents, and the other was a male nurse. Selene nabbed a sandwich from the platter and munched away as she stood beside Scott. Everyone stayed silent, letting the room be filled with the excited ramblings of Leanne, who still hadn’t noticed the newcomers. Stealing a ham sandwich earned a raised eyebrow from Sally, and a jealous side glance from Scott. Apparently, there was an etiquette she had forgotten. Finally, the nurse cleared his throat and Kaia introduced them.

“Leanne, this is Sally Tracy of International Rescue and her grandchildren, Scott and Selene.”

Selene held in a chuckle as the child’s jaw dropped and her eyes zeroed in on Scott. His uniform and tall certain demeanour clearly stating who he was. Her chestnut eyes sparkled with excitement as her hands flew to her cheeks.

“Hello Leanne.” Scott introduced himself, stepping forward and kneeling before her so he was at her level. His presence was calming, and he was giving her his best dimpled smile. “I hope you’ve had a fantastic time in the stunt plane. I used to enjoy performing similar manoeuvres when I flew in the Air Force.”

All Leanne could do was nod, completely star struck.

“Well, I can’t promise you any stunts, but I can show you around Thunderbird One before taking you and one of your parents up for a quick circle of the planet.”

“Y-Yes please!” She squeaked.

“Before we head out, I have this for you.” Sally stepped up behind Scott and held out the bright pink baldric, “so you can be one of us.”

The delight almost burst out of Leanne to the point she that she was shaking. Sally helped slip the loop over her head and secure the baldric in place. The child ran her fingers over the iR logo. With the blue of the flight suit, she really didn’t look amiss next to Scott. Her father stepped up and helped Leanne to stand, before looping his arm through her elbow. It was the moment the reality of the situation first hit Selene. With her father supporting her, she could walk but it was clear she was struggling to balance. Scott moved to be the other side of her and engaged them in conversation, though Selene knew he was primed to help if needed. They all followed out to the tarmac. There were many exclamations of wonder at the sight of Thunderbird One. A few tears were shed, and many photos taken. It was a pleasure to see Leanne’s face lit up and full of life as she posed next to Scott. Everyone was allowed inside for a view before Leanne and her father were strapped in for their flight. Selene put her arm around the mother as the air around them was whipped up by Thunderbird One’s thrusters.

“Thank you,” she sobbed, “You can’t imagine how much this means to us, and to Leanne. She fought so hard. Then to find out it had come back. All her dreams shattered, but this. This was just perfect.”

Rubbing gentle circles into the woman’s back, Selene guided her back inside to wait for their return. Selene gave her ear to the woman, letting her spill and release her feelings, knowing that the simple act of talking can help lift some of the weight. Her own heart ached for the family and their situation. Medical treatments had come so far, but there were still times when that progress had yet to come far enough for everyone. People were still being lost. Slowly the mood lightened, and the conversation moved on to lighter topics. The food was offered to them and they happily snacked as the spoke. They put aside a plate and bottle of pop for Scott. Sally’s wrist pinged to indicate the imminent return of the Thunderbird. Again, they all left to go to the tarmac, although this time the nurse had a hoverchair in tow. The grins on both Leanne and her father were priceless as they headed over laughing. Leanne was helped into the chair after a hug with each of them. Scott slipped his arm around Selene’s shoulder and gave her a squeeze, which she returned. They waved goodbye before climbing back into Thunderbird One. They launched immediately, allowing Leanne to watch the machine from below.

“Do you mind dropping me off in Kanas? I’ve planned a weekend away with some friends, and this saves me flying back out tomorrow.”

“Sure thing, Grandma. You got any requests Selene?”

“Just home for me.”

Thunderbird One landed beside the house and they waved goodbye to Sally. Scott sat in the vacated seat as he scoffed the sandwiches they’d saved gratefully. Selene could see the emotional weight that sat on the man’s shoulders. She leant over and rested against him. He would talk when ready. As the man glugged down the cola, the comm bleeped and John floated before them.

“Scott. There is a couple of climbers stuck on a mountain and Thunderbird Two is currently deployed.”

Scott sighed. The world knew when to pick its moments.

“You okay with a quick detour, Selene?”

“I’ll be here if you need me.”

Scott gave her a smile before climbing up into his seat.

“Send us the coordinates. Let’s just hope they don’t mind pink.”

#thunderbirds #thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds 2004 #thunderbirds fanfiction #thunderbirds 1965 #Scott Tracy #Gordon Tracy #sally tracy #John Tracy #easterTAG #submission

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hedwigstalons · 4 years

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High Expectations - Ch23

Yes, this fic is still being written. No, it is not abandoned despite the *gulps* month since that last chapter went out.

@willow-salix has been her usual amazing self with the editing (and extra amazing for helping me through the stuff that has contributed to the huge gap in writing).

Earlier parts: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One , Twenty-Two

AO3 chapter link

Chapter Twenty-Three

Thwack

Virgil’s eyes tracked the arc of the baseball as it made another short journey up towards the ceiling before landing in Alan’s waiting hands.

Thwack

He gritted his teeth, trying to ignore the teen sprawled on his back on the couch. He knew Alan was only doing it to annoy him having been told he couldn’t start another game with the arrival of John imminent but it was taking all his willpower not to snap, he didn’t have the energy for the argument Alan was obviously spoiling for. As soon as the missing sibling turned up they would be settling down for dinner and Virgil had decided he would rather deal with a bored Alan than try and drag him away from whatever virtual world he was immersed in when the time came to eat. Except the expected ten minutes had already ticked closer to an hour and John still hadn’t appeared.

Thwack

It didn’t make the actions of his brother any less annoying in the meantime. It certainly didn’t help that he had a test to study for. Where had Alan even managed to get a baseball from in the first place?

Thwack

The door to the small apartment he shared with John clicked open and Virgil audibly sighed with relief as his immediate younger brother finally showed up. He closed up his books, giving the page a baleful glance as he did so; he hadn’t taken in a word in the last half hour and knew time was running out.

“Fiiiiiinally.” Alan caught the ball with one last thwack and sat up, popping the ball on the seat next to him. “Virg said you would be back by six.”

“Sorry,” John looked sheepishly at the clock that was now ticking closer to 7pm, “I got held up on campus but I treated us to take out take out to make up for it.”

Alan’s eyes lit up at the prospect of food. Delicious smells were wafting from the paper bag John carried and his stomach rumbled. Take out was a rare treat, hell, even eating in company was a rare treat; their father was increasingly slipping back into bad habits and didn’t often make it back in time for dinner. Since his shift to online school he could sometimes go three or four days without seeing another human being unless he ventured out of the apartment, it was one of the reasons he could be found so frequently on John and Virgil’s couch.

“What have we got, Chinese?” Alan asked.

“No, Thai. There is a nice little place two blocks away that does an amazing spicy shrimp soup and their pad thai is pretty decent too.”

“You went to the Mango Tree?” Virgil’s mood lifted at the prospect.

“Yes, I went to Mango Tree. Don’t expect me to do this every time, I just thought you could do with a pick me up seeing as exams are on the horizon and I don’t think we’ve introduced Alan to it yet. Plus, I’m late.” he said, placing the bag on the table on his way past to the kitchen.

The Thai place, a little gem they had discovered within their first month at Tracy College, had become a firm favourite but one reserved for special occasions, or apologies in the case of tonight. Virgil was quick to clear away his files to make space on the table that was currently doubling up as a desk and by the time John returned with an assortment of spoons, forks and chopsticks, the containers were already laid out.

Alan wandered over to claim his place between his two siblings, feeling guilty at the reminder that Virgil was meant to be studying for exams. He knew his actions had been irritating, he’d even been deliberately varying the gaps between his throws so Virgil couldn’t get used to the rhythm, but he was bored and it hurt that yet another person couldn’t be bothered to show up when they were meant to.

"So how are you getting on with freight transport law?" John asked between slurps of his soup.

"Slowly," Virgil growled, casting a frown towards Alan who at least had the good grace to look shamefaced.

The interaction didn’t pass unnoticed by John who directed his own frown at Alan. While the other brothers had, in turn, taken on the holistic care of Alan, John was more focussed on his education, especially knowing Alan’s determination to head into space one day. Finding out that Alan had transferred to online school had been a surprise but to find out it had followed a bout of truancy had left him furious. He wasn’t prepared to let Alan screw up his education and he certainly wasn’t going to let him drag Virgil down either, he knew this exam had been weighing heavily on his brother’s mind and the last thing he needed was unnecessary distractions.

“Didn’t you have any work to be getting on with?” John asked the recalcitrant teen.

Alan tried to stare John down but found that his most introverted sibling had learnt to hold his own under scrutiny, at least where family were concerned. He dropped his gaze on the pretext of picking a piece of chicken out of his pad thai and tried to sound nonchalant. “I’m ahead of myself so I took the day off.”

“That’s no reason to disturb others, Virgil and I both have some key exams coming up and you need to respect that if you want to keep coming here. And anyway, there’s no such thing as being ahead of yourself on your study programme, I know you picked one that lets you submit work at any time and complete your diploma at whatever pace you want.”

“Was hoping you’d be here,” the voice was small and dejected, all the fight gone before it could properly build. He didn’t really want to argue with his brothers but sometimes it felt like the only way to be noticed was by challenging authority. He was never going to win a gold medal, unlikely to win a scholarship and certainly wasn’t going to get military honours. With those more admirable routes to gaining attention taken away from him that just left being a problem; he had to remember that his brothers were not like his father and he could actually talk to them without needing to be summoned first.

John watched Alan visibly wilt under his gaze, crushed by the force of his disapproval and it took a moment for the words to sink in. The others had occasionally joked about Alan being his shadow or asked what it was like to be up on a pedestal but he usually shrugged it off. Now, hearing that simple hope voiced with such longing John was reminded that it wasn’t entirely a joke, that of all of them Alan strived for his attention and approval the most and with that came great responsibility.

“I know and I’m really sorry. The guy leading the seminar today was an expert in broad spectrum communication arrays and I wanted to run some ideas by him. I’ve been working on some theories on multi-frequency monitoring and didn’t know when I would get another chance to talk to him.” He paused, realising he was babbling in his attempt to make Alan see that this had been important, that he hadn’t wanted to be late and really did care. But Alan didn’t need his excuses, what he needed was his brothers. He took a sip of water and refocused his attentions. “Look, I don’t have any classes until 12 tomorrow so we can do something together in the morning. In the afternoon you can either stay here and do your own work or come with me and sit in on my lectures.”

“It’s not freight law is it? Cos that stuff sounds dull as anything.” He knew John was trying to make up for being late home and ordinarily he would have jumped at the chance to gatecrash some lectures but he was still hurting and not ready to forgive him so quickly. “I really don’t get why Virgil is even getting his space licence anyway, let alone for transport pilot.”

Both John and Virgil decided to ignore that comment. Alan had grown up a lot lately but they both knew he had always viewed space as the personal domain of himself and John and was still prone to the occasional flare of jealousy that Virgil was getting space rated too, seemingly on a whim. The news of Virgil’s first trip into orbit had been greeted with a flare of temper that saw Alan rejecting all calls for a week.

“I don’t have to take that one, although I do have a few units of my own I could do without. No, tomorrow is nutrition and physiology.” He noted the eye roll that suggested Alan wasn’t enthused with those topics either. “There’s no need to decide now, just see how you feel tomorrow, but you can’t spend all afternoon on video games , if you stay home you’ll need to get some school work done or Dad might stop you from staying over.”

Alan knew that was an empty threat. As long as he kept turning in grade cards at regular intervals and was on track to finish his diploma no later than if he had been in school then he was fairly confident their father wouldn’t even think of banning the trips to Kansas. If anything he seemed to be keen to have Alan out of town as much as possible as his overseas business trips became more frequent.

The prospect of getting to spend at least the following morning with John lifted Alan’s mood considerably and the rest of the meal passed without incident.

xoxoxox

John quietly pushed open Virgil’s door. The light spilled out, momentarily lighting up the tousle haired figure on the couch before it was blocked by John as he quickly slipped inside, leaving the door ajar behind him. He took in the piles of notes on the desk and the bucket sized mug beside them, now empty of the coffee he knew it would have contained.

“Anything I can help with?” he asked, perching on the edge of the bed that really ought to be occupied already.

Virgil spun his chair around. “No, thanks, it’s not difficult, just tedious.”

This was something John could empathise with. While they each had a different specialism and focus to their course, both had encountered topics that less than thrilled them; for Virgil freight transport law was a topic he was unable to feel enthusiastic about but it was a necessary component to his studies.

“Working through the night isn’t going to help.”

“I need to make up the time, I didn’t get much studying done earlier.”

“Alan?” John rolled his eyes in a way that suggested this was a statement rather than a question. The attitude over dinner had shown that Alan had been in a bad mood and he knew that Virgil was too soft to just put the teen in his place.

Virgil nodded then yawned, space law wasn’t a thrilling topic at the best of times and his focus was distinctly wavering. The effects of the coffee were wearing off and, much as he would like another, the coffee maker was loud and he didn’t want to risk waking the teenager currently sleeping in their living area.

“Why didn’t you just work in here?” To John it made absolutely no sense that his brother had set up at the dining table when he had a perfectly good desk in his own room where he could have gotten on with his work in peace as he was doing now.

“Couldn't you feel how much he wants our attention? He may have been a pain in the ass but I couldn’t disappear and ignore him when he’s only just got here. I’ve got time. The exam isn’t ‘til Thursday, I can study once he’s asleep.”

“Not tonight you aren't ,” John frowned as yet another yawn escaped his sibling, “and you haven’t been ignoring him, Alan said you took him flying this morning. Have you gotten any studying done today?”

“Not enough,” Virgil groaned, casting another glance at the scribbles on permitted loads and which cargoes needed to be registered with the Space Authority prior to launch. While his study time may have taken a hit he didn’t regret taking his youngest brother flying, the pure joy Alan exhibited while in the air was a world away from the loneliness he had confessed to on the ride back from the airfield. “But at least Alan still wants to talk to me.”

“Still nothing from Scott?” John sighed. He could see how much the growing distance between his two oldest brothers was preying on Virgil’s mind; freight transport law really didn’t stand a chance.

“Nothing worth mentioning.” He raked a hand through his hair in an action that had John raising an eyebrow. Virgil squirmed slightly under the gaze that suddenly seemed far too knowing and he was reminded that, while John might be guarded about his own emotions, that didn’t mean he wasn’t observant to the moods of others. He really didn’t want to be unloading all his concerns onto John, it was part of the unwritten code of older brothers to not burden the younger ones, but with his usual outlet and sounding board going awol being one of his issues he found himself leaning on his next in line.

“I’m worried about him,” Virgil confided, “we used to talk all the time but now I’m lucky if I can keep him on the line for three minutes at a time and my messages go unanswered for days.”

“Perhaps he’s just talking to Gordon more, ever since the whole WASP thing those two have been a lot closer.”

“Maybe, but since Gordon started on the bathyscape he’s been pretty busy. That’s one of the things Alan was telling me ; Gordon used to check in with him every couple of days but since taking command and starting his course he’s really cut back on contact. I’m worried that Scott isn’t talking to any of us. There is something going on and I don’t like it; you know how he can be when something’s bothering him.”

John had never had the kind of bond with Scott that Virgil had but he knew well enough that Virgil’s instincts for these things were generally to be trusted. It was almost uncanny how Virgil was able to sense upset and tension in his brothers and more than once during his time at Harvard John had found himself on the receiving end of a well timed holo-call or care package.

“Do you think it’s Dad?” While John might not have been explicitly confided in before he certainly wasn’t stupid, he’d picked up on the tone of his brothers’ calls before the topic of the future had become verboten. Even if he hadn’t there was no ignoring that fact that Scott hadn’t been attending the scheduled group calls with their father and the ire this raised despite Jeff’s thinly veiled attempts to brush Scott’s absences off as down to unavoidable Air Force commitments. It didn’t take a genius to work out that relations between Scott and their father had become strained.

“Could be. You know well enough that Dad still won’t even consider a plan that doesn’t have Scott as field commander, he talks like it’s a done deal and I know Scott hates that, he feels like he’s had all free will stripped away. If Dad has been getting at him again that would certainly be getting him down.” Virgil picked up his mug and tipped it back, grimacing when it only yielded a few cold and bitter drips, before setting it back down heavily. God he needed more caffeine but he wasn’t quite ready to resort to the emergency energy drink stashed in his desk and he had a suspicious feeling John wouldn’t let him have it anyway. He turned back to the problem in hand; now he’d started confiding in John he may as well keep going. “Thing is, that doesn’t explain why Scott has started avoiding me. I’ve been careful not to mention the whole business to him, I’ve had my head chewed off too many times and since Scott made it perfectly clear he isn’t joining we just agreed to not talk about it. No, I think there is something else going on, something more than just Dad, but he keeps shutting me out.”

“Try not to worry about Scott for now, or at least not until after Thursday. At the moment all you need to focus on is that exam.”

Virgil cast a rueful glance at the hated notes. He knew John was right, once the freight law was out of the way he could throw his energies at distant siblings a lot more freely, or at least he could until the next exam came along. The problem was, without Scott on the team, he wasn’t wholly convinced that the exam was going to mean anything. .

“Do you think we can do it? I mean really make it work. Cos with only the three of us I just can’t see how it'll be possible. Even with Scott it would be a stretch but without him…” he tailed off, unwilling to say out loud what he was really feeling, that the whole thing was a fool's errand. No amount of good intentions and determination would be enough to run the outfit successfully with just him, John and their father.

John could understand his doubts. He had plenty of them himself, none of which had been dispelled by the many calculations he had run, trying to find some tiny shred of evidence that said the dream could indeed be made reality. Looking at it logically he knew their father’s vision was an impossible fantasy but it was a fantasy he wanted to believe in. He wanted to live among the stars and the venture was nothing if not noble.

The notes on freight law lay abandoned on the desk as the brothers continued to talk through their fears, hopes and dreams, unaware that the figure in the next room wasn’t quite as asleep as they thought.

Xoxoxox

“So, what’s International Rescue?”

There was a splutter as John half choked on a spoonful of granola. Virgil set the coffee pot down on the counter and carefully schooled his features to a neutral expression before turning to face his brother.

“What was that, Al?”

“You heard me,” the nonchalance of the original question now gone, Alan’s voice was aggressive and challenging. “International Rescue.”

Virgil darted a look at John but found no help there, the latter was still wiping tears from his eyes having finally dislodged the clump of oats. Any hope of passing it off as nothing had been dashed by John’s unfortunate and very obvious reaction to the question. He sighed, reclaimed the coffee pot, and brought the whole jug over to the table. There was no way he was facing this conversation without caffeine and he had a feeling he was going to need more than one cup.

“You want me to get you some water?”

John gave another cough and shook his head. “No, I’m good, thanks.”

“Are either of you going to answer me or are you just going to ignore me like Dad does?” Alan was bristling with indignation which was coming across with a brattish pout.

“I’m not ignoring you, I just...you threw me, that all. How did you find out?”

“I heard you two talking last night.”

Virgil poured himself a mug of coffee and quickly drained half of it, despite it still being scalding hot. The thought that this was a problem of his own making settled like a lead weight in the pit of his stomach. He tried to remember just what he and John had talked about, he knew there had been a lot both about International Rescue and the family in general, and he wondered how much Alan had overheard. “We thought you were asleep.”

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t.”

“Look, it’s not that we don’t want to tell you it’s just Dad forbade us from talking about it.” Indecision and worry played out across Virgil’s features at the prospect of defying a direct order.

“Gordon made you promise you would tell him.” John cut in, a little unhelpfully in Virgil’s opinion. “If he heard us talking last night he may as well hear the full story, now is as good a time as any.”

Alan had heard Scott’s name crop up last night but Gordon hadn’t been mentioned in relation to whatever this mysterious plan was. Discussions on Gordon had been limited to WASP and the course he was doing with CalTech from what he had heard. The knowledge that the entire family was hiding something from him, including the brother he thought he could trust the most, came as a bitter blow, resentment that had been building for some time came crashing out.

“Gordon knows too?" he clarified, not wanting to believe it. "I hate this family sometimes, I hate that I’m just some afterthought. I thought Gordon was different, I thought he cared. Guess I was wrong.” Alan could see the hurt he was causing as the words hit Virgil like a whip, but he was too angry to care., if anything it felt good to see his brother feeling the same pain that he was.

“That’s not true, Alan, ” Virgil assured him, trying to soothe some of the hurt that was bubbling out of his youngest brother. “Gordon does care, we all do.”

“Yeah, well you’ve got a funny way of showing it. I’m always the last to know everything, it’s like I’m some massive inconvenience. I might as well just pack my stuff and get out of your hair.”

Alan pushed his chair back from the table with a scrape and started grabbing the belongings he had discarded around the room over the course of his short visit, shoving them into the open duffel bag at the end of the couch. He could deal with the others knowing stuff but Gordon was different. It had hurt so much that Gordon hadn’t confided in him about WASP and now it seemed that he had been betrayed again. Gordon had made that transition into adulthood, someone worth telling stuff to, and he was still some kid to be kept in the dark. Alone.

“Alan, please, it’s really not like that.” Virgil was after him like a shot, grabbing his brother’s arm in an attempt to halt the furious packing. The blue eyes that spun to face him contained a mix of tears and venom.

Alan tried to pull away, embarrassed at the emotion he couldn’t control, but hearing that Gordon had been keeping secrets again had stabbed him in the heart. The hand on his arm became a full on bear hug and Alan found himself wrapped in solid muscle with no hope of escape. He struggled for a moment then stilled, giving up on his attempt to get free.

Virgil never loosened his hold, warm and comforting, and Alan soon found himself returning the hug; he couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually been held like this and hadn’t realised how much he missed the human contact. He became vaguely aware of an extra hand on his shoulder and unburied his head enough to see that John had joined them.

“Believe me, Alan, we’ve wanted to tell you. Gordon especially made it quite clear you shouldn’t be frozen out of all this but Dad was adamant that you weren’t to be told. No matter what Dad says we were going to tell you once Virgil qualified but I think we need to bring that forward.” There was total honesty in John’s eyes as he held his brother’s gaze.

Alan was slightly mollified that there had at least been a plan among his brothers to bring him into the loop and he could feel the sincerity in his brother's words. He was increasingly quick to anger at the injustices of being the youngest, more so now that he didn’t have Gordon around to share in the same treatment, but he knew deep down that his main antagonist was their father with his draconian rules. If their father had expressly forbidden something, rather than just choosing not to mention it, then he knew he was putting Virgil and John in an incredibly difficult position; witnessing Gordon’s defiance and their father’s reaction to it had shown that he wasn’t beyond making life intensely difficult for those who dared to disobey.

Feeling that the tension had at least partially ebbed out of his youngest brother’s body Virgil loosened his grip and sat down on the couch, inviting Alan to take the seat next to him. Ever thoughtful, John reclaimed the coffee pot and mugs from the table and set them up on the coffee table before grabbing a spare seat.

“I think it’s time we brought you up to speed. There are some big changes ahead although even we don’t know when anything is going to happen. And John’s right, Gordon isn’t to blame for this at all. We were shocked when he said you guys never got warned before the move to LA and we promised you’d never get another upheaval like that.”

“I’ve gotta move again?” As much as Alan had no great fondness for LA he also wasn’t keen on the idea of uprooting yet again, setting up goodness knows where, which sounded very much like where this conversation was headed. At least this time he wouldn’t have to worry about integrating into a new school.

“WE are going to move. I’m not sure when, but yeah, Dad’s setting up somewhere new. Once I get my space rating I’ll be moving back to LA then, a year later, when he’s finished his course, John’s going to be joining us, wherever we happen to be at the time.”

Alan looked across at John and received a slight nod of confirmation. “Yeah, I’ll be coming home too, at least until my space station is ready.”

Alan’s eyes widened.

“John, are you sure…?”

John just rolled his eyes at Virgil. “Believe me, it’s better to tell him everything than have him guessing, or worse hunting for the information himself.”

Virgil still looked unconvinced but decided to follow John’s lead. When the news had come out about Alan hacking the school administration systems he had been shocked at the youngest Tracy’s disregard for rules but John had merely shrugged and commented that he would probably have done the same. John had been more disappointed that Alan had been skipping school, the rest of the duplicitous behaviour hadn’t phased him and Virgil had received a surprising and uncomfortable insight into a shared characteristic of the two brothers currently sat with him. If John thought unanswered questions would lead to Alan seeking out the details for himself then he would much rather tell all. If their father found out this conversation was happening they would all be in serious trouble but if Alan was caught attempting to go through their father’s files, well, Virgil didn’t want to imagine the consequences of that.

“I guess you’re right, I mean the whole idea can only work if we trust each other and that means total honesty.”

The coffee went cold as Virgil, aided by John, told Alan all he could about their father’s vision for a rescue organisation with global capabilities, the aircraft currently being designed and the supporting vehicles and equipment that would be used on site to help those in need, and of course the need to relocate to a suitable base.

The conversation became decidedly trickier when it came to detailing the role each brother was expected to take in the organisation. Much as Virgil would have preferred to leave out the growing rift that was opening up between Scott and their father, there was no escaping the fact that the plans were not progressing smoothly.

He reached the end and waited, unsure how Alan would react.

“So this is why you’re doing this course , so you can help get John get to his monitoring station or whatever it is?”

“Yeah, and to help take stuff up there before things go operational.” Trust Alan to latch on to the space flight parts of the whole set-up, Virgil just hoped Alan would be less jealous of him getting space rated now he knew why it was happening. Until now he had never been able to give a decent answer for his sudden change in direction away from engineering. Despite Alan trying to hide it if it meant he could escape LA and come visit, he knew his brother resented what he saw as an intrusion on the domain he viewed as his and John’s alone. “Beyond supply runs I doubt I’ll be heading into space much. Life on the comms satellite doesn’t appeal to me so I’m hoping I won’t have to do too many rotations.”

“But Scott doesn’t want in?”

“Uh huh. John and I have been trying to figure out how it could work without him because Dad is just ploughing on regardless. He’s convinced Scott’s going to just resign his commission and fall into line the moment he gives the order.”

“I think I’ll make myself scarce when that showdown happens.” Alan hadn’t often witnessed Scott and their father butt heads, those sorts of disagreements tended to happen firmly behind closed doors, but he could easily imagine the two clashing, each as stubborn and determined as the other.

“Probably wise,” replied John. “And you can't let Dad know we’ve been speaking about this or we’ll all be on the receiving end of those fireworks.”

“Don’t worry about that, that would involve Dad actually talking to me and he barely even registers that I exist.”

That earned a frown from Virgil who was suddenly even more glad that he only had a couple more months left at Tracy College. With Gordon forging a new life in WASP he’d made a solemn promise to look out for Alan but what with the demands of his course and his worries over Scott, he realised he hadn’t been paying as much attention as he should. He certainly hadn’t realised their father had gotten quite so distant and aloof with the teen again. Still, in two months time he would be back in LA where he could give his brother some proper attention. In the meantime his freight law notes were beckoning; if he failed the exam and didn’t achieve his space rating then International Rescue would be even more of an impossible pipedream.

#thunderbirds #thunderbirds fanfiction #high expectations #John Tracy #Virgil Tracy #Alan Tracy

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orderoftheavengers · 7 years

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The Other Guy

BRUTUS “BRUCE” BANNER

Summary: Ilvermorny potions prodigy, turned giant green werewolf.

Hogwarts House: Ravenclaw

Ilvermorny House: Horned Serpent

Species: Human, werewolf (unique, potion-created breed) Blood status: Muggle-born

Wand: Womping Willow wood, 15 inches, unicorn tail hair

Broom: Tinderblast (not the fastest, but the most durable)

Familiar: Cute little barn owl named Ruffalo/Ruffles

Specialty: Potions

Patronus: Brown Bear

A New Kind of Werewolf

When Brutus "Bruce" Banner was in his first year at Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he was taking potions class with the sixth years. His house was Horned Serpent, the egghead house. He was dating Zarabeth "Betty" Ross, of Thunderbird (the "warrior" house), daughter of auror Thaddeus Ross. For his final project of his first year, Bruce was working on an assignment that involved creating a potion that would grant the drinker some impressive powers. Wanting to go above and beyond, Bruce tried to re-create the super-auror serum that had resulted in Steve "the Captain" Rodgers.

Now, mixing the saliva of a werewolf and the blood of a troll into the Polyjuice potion, adding a dash of Doxy venom, a few hairs from a Metamorphmagus, and dropping in a dragon scale to finish it off, and then testing this concoction on yourself probably doesn't sound like a very Horned Serpent or Ravenclaw thing to do. But for an eleven-year-old, Bruce was showing some stunning genius, and took more precautions than most first years in his place would've.

Still, the results were catastrophic. And green. And furry.

On the Run

Thaddeus Ross became obsessed with "containing" the "monster," or worse. (Which is obviously kind of fucked up, since Bruce was still not even twelve yet.) Obviously the Ministry of Magic wasn't going to let Thaddeus kill a kid, but even they couldn't completely control the overzealous auror. Thaddeus's daughter Betty helped Bruce flee Ivermorny. Bruce tried hiding out in some magical communities at first, but soon discovered that the more magic there was around him, the more likely he was to lose control. Maybe it was physical contact with extra magic that made the wolf harder to control, or maybe it was just the stress of being in a community where everyone knew what he was. But in any case, Bruce fled the wizarding world, and lived among muggles in various foreign countries, usually in the sketchiest parts of the cities. A muggleborn, Bruce was already somewhat estranged from his parents, and didn't feel much loss in cutting contact with them.

While hiding out in a muggle favela in Brazil, he kept regular owl-contact with a mysterious pen-pal who went by "Professor Blue," who helped Bruce come up with temporary antidotes for his condition. The now twelve-year-old wizard supported himself mixing colorful paints for those kickass favela buildings, and made a few friends. His next-door-and-one-square-up neighbor was a snake who apparently knew Harry Potter. (Communication between Bruce and his scaly neighbor was limited though, as Bruce didn't speak Parselmouth and the Snake could barely write in Portuguese.) Thaddeus eventually found Bruce, and rode into battle astride a Portugues Longsnout. The dragon's flames however had no affect on the giant green werwolf. Fortunately, no muggles were hurt in the battle, except a group of drug lords who'd just assumed they were hallucinating and didn't get out of the way. Bruce fled into the rain-forest, where he transformed back into a human. He wandered alone for a while until he happened on a friendly chuppacabra that agreed to give him a lift. The chuppacabra didn't speak Protuguese, but told Bruce in Spanish that he wasn't in Brazil anymore. Figuring hiding out wasn't working, Bruce decided to go back to Ivelmorny where most of his old research was, and continue working on a cure. The chuppacabra gave Bruce a ride all the way back to the States, stopping for a few portions of goat for lunch along the way. Bruce reunited with Betty, and together they traveled overseas to Hogwarts to meet "Professor Blue." How did Bruce figure that was where Blue would be? Well in all his letters he kept mentioning "tea" and "ugly Christmas jumpers," and regularly had to be reminded that the asshole chasing Bruce was not a "Slytherin." When they finally met, Blue--actually a forth year named Samuel Sterns--was very disappointed to learn his cover had been blown so easily. (It appears that while Ravenclaws are usually brilliant in some areas, a lot of them lack some ingenuity outside the lab.) While the three worked on finding a cure for Bruce, the Sorting Hat dropped by to inform Betty that she was a Gryffindor, and Bruce a Ravenclaw. (Betty had a mind for science yes, but that was overriden by the courage and fortitude she'd inherited from her homicidally brave father; it takes a Gryffindor to go after a Hulk, and an even bigger Gryffindor to love one.)

Ross caught up to them again, now with a Chinese Fireball. A massive battle ensued all over Hogwarts' grounds. While on his defensive rampage, Wolf-Hulk wound up toppling a few castle towers, uprooting the Whomping Willow, and flinging the Giant Squid through the wall of the Great Hall (insert sushi joke). The Quidditch pitch was also pretty much decimated. This was not a good day for groundskeeper Argus Filch. The battle finally ended when Professor Neville Longbottom (now teaching herbology) announced via microphone-wand-spell that if Thaddeus didn't break off his attack ASAP, he'd call the Ministry on him and he'd have all of his medals and mustache confiscated indefinitely. The Ministry of Magic had arrived by then, and took Betty and Bruce into custody.

Unbeknown to our heroes, a neighbor back at the favela named Emil Blonsky had witnessed Bruce transform into "the incredible green furry," and was overcome with awe and envy. He tracked the heroes to Hogwarts, and cornered Sterns in his lab, demanding the Ravenclaw transform him into a badass like Bruce. Sterns immediately replied, "Holy balls, you look JUST like that guy from 'Four Roo--'" Blonsky's hand around his throat cut him off. Sterns reluctantly agreed to inject Blonsky with Bruce's blood, and then ran for cover (all the way down to the dungeons, past some Slytherins entering thier common room, and diving under a green-and-silver sofa where Tony Stark was reading a dirty "Veela" magazine).

Blonsky transformed not into a green wolf-ogre, but instead, an orange ogre-troll. He bellowed, "I AM ABOMINATION BITCHES!!!!" to the un-phased Hogwarts populace (who witnessed stuff like this every other week), and then promptly began smashing down the towers, Quidditch stadium and Whomping Willow that Argus Filch had just finally finished repairing.

Everyone in Hogwarst was quickly evacuated to Hogsmeade, so Bruce could smash-fight Abomination without worrying too much about collateral damage. Betty however secretly stayed behind, and at the end of the battle, begged Bruce not to kill Abomination.

"Bruce please, he's already died in 'Reservoir Dogs'..."

"Huh?"

"I AM NOT TIM ROTH!"

Bruce punched Blonsky, shutting him up.</b>

The Ministry of Magic quickly arrived to the scene and transformed Blonsky/Abomination into a ferret, before taking him into custody. Ross was about to order his dragon to blast another fireball at the Hulk-Wolf; but seeing human Bruce hugging his daughter, Ross finally admitted to himself, "Maybe there is something a little bit wrong with trying to kill or arrest a twelve-year-old..." The Ministry still wanted Bruce in custody though, and Bruce was forced to flee again after bidding Betty a tear-jerker farewell. After the credits, Thaddeus then went to the Three Broomsticks to get drunk and smoke a cigar; Tony Stark attempted to make a cameo, but didn't get one sentence out before Rosmerta noticed the firwewisky margarita in the underage Slytherin student's hand, and chucked him out.

Order of the Avengers

Bruce went back to hiding out amongst muggles, this time in Asia. The stress of trying to keep the wolf repressed resulted in half a head of gray hair before the poor little wizard was old enough to be bar-mitzvahed. Things got so low that at one point, he stood before a mirror and attempted to cast Avada Kadavara on himself. The "other guy" spit the green death-blast out (incinerating a nearby adult video store and causing a mass UFO conspiracy in the area). So he got passed his depression, and moved on by helping people. He used his magic to cure diseases for sick muggles in the slums of the third world, ignoring the Ministry's rules completely. Then one day, a redhead confronted him with a wand, and introduced herself as Natasha Romanoff. She wasn't here to kill him. She was here to recruit him for the Order of the Avengers. The program was at Hogwarts, so he'd have to go back to school; but at least it wouldn't be the school where his accident had happened, with all the bad memories. Bruce finally gave in, and began classes as a third-year Ravenclaw. Bruce contributed both brains and brawn to the Order, and became "potions bros" with Tony Stark. Bruce learned the hard way that while Ravenclaws and Slytherins make great lab partners, the latter can be a very bad influence on the former. If Bruce had a knut for every time Tony talked him into some experiment that backfired on them, he'd be richer than Harry Potter.

Bruce's other closest friend was fellow Ravenclaw Natasha, who had once been brainwashed by Death Eaters. She and Bruce bonded over the fact that at heart, they're both Ravenclaws, but have been transformed into some kind of monster or another against their will. They began dating, but no one's sure if they're still a thing, or if it was just a fling.

Detention With the Grand Master

In his final year at Hogwarts, Bruce, along with Thor, had to miss out on the epic illegal Quidditch match the other Avengers arranged. (Fortunately, it sounds like Thor and Bruce didn’t miss much, as the whole “civil war” game was less of a “deep clash of ideals” than a “drunken brawl fueled by Idiot Balls.”)

Defense Against the Dark Arts Class. Actually, most of the Avengers were behind in that class. But when Professor Masters--AKA “the Grand Master”--assigned all the failures to detention in the Dark Forrest, Bruce was the only one studious enough, and Thor the only one concerned with his fighting skills enough, to obediently attend their detention instead of playing Quidditch.

In detention, the Grand Master--Hogwarts’ latest eccentric D.A.D.A. professor--forced various badass students to duel each other, for cheering crowds of cheering centaurs, unicorns, merfolk, and other strange creatures. And while wearing ridiculously fruity gladiator outfits. (And the Grand Master’s henchmen will tell you, forcing a giant green wolf into Roman armor is no cakewalk.) Bruce and Thor had an epic duel, before the werewolf noticed Loki, and made like a pooch chasing a screaming, squealing car.

But the group wound up having to play Hooky after all, with Thor’s homeland at stake. Bruce helped Thor and Loki defeat their evil half-sister Hela, and almost caught himself a break....

As if.

Waning Powers

A regular werewolf will change with the moon no matter what. But Bruce was no regular werewolf. The potion that had transformed him had contained hairs from not only werewolves, but Metamorphmagi as well. And those who knew Nymphadora Tonks know that a Metamorphmagus’s powers can be affected by their mood.

Thanos gave the green wolf such a frightening beating, that the “monster” refused to “come out” afterwards, even when Bruce desperately needed him to. Thus, Bruce was forced to fight like a boring regular wizard, on a broom with a wand. Green asshole.

But after Thanos’s Dusting Curse murders half of Bruce’s friends, and half the universe he’d worked so hard to redeem himself by protecting, the wolf returned full-force...

Professor Wolf

With help from Tony and Shuri, and his own Ravenclaw cleverness, Bruce finally found a way to make peace with “the other guy.” He now walked around in the form of a furry green humanoid, taking the name “Professor Wolf.” Since Thanos’s curse and following tyrannical rule exposed the magical world to the Mugggles, Professor Wolf gained some new Muggle fangirls, mainly from the segments of Muggledom that frequented DeviantArt and Fur Affinity.

Time Travel

Deep in Snape’s old Potions dungeon, Tony, Bruce, Rocket, and Shuri–who was not Dusted!–all get together to brainstorm how to use the Spirit Realm for Time Travel (since Thanos destroyed all the Time Turners).

The four geniuses exchange ingenuity and banter, and it is brilliant. Rocket, a niffler, is enamored with Tony’s chest amulet, and steals it, causing some health problems for Tony. This angers Professor Wolf, who chases the niffler/raccoon hybrid around the lab until he catches him and makes him into a violent chew toy.

Shuri snags Rocket from the Wolf, and the amulet from Rocket. Struck with inspiration, the Wakandan princess makes some adjustments to the amulet, to Tony’s embarrassment and begrudging awe. This leads to a “eureka!” moment for the four of them, in regards to the Time Travel problem, and they finally get it solved.

Ravenclaw to Ravenclaw

Bruce gets the Time Stone from fellow a Ravenclaw, the Ancient One. Not battle or trickery is needed for this one; just honest, Ravencalw-to-Ravenclaw reasoning. When Bruce tells her about Strange sacrificing the Time Stone to save Tony, she realizes what this must mean, and hands the Stone over to Bruce.

After losing the Ravenclaw closest to him--Natasha Romanoff--Bruce is as devastated as Clint. Professor Wolf roars, and tosses a bench into the lake. The kids sitting on the bench, Teddy Lupin and Victoire Weasley, barely react, as they too were close with Nat and are mourning her. Even the Giant Squid is too sad to be bothered by the littering of his lake.

But later, when Bruce is fighting Thanos in the final battle, something extraordinary happens...

Bruce and the Wolf fight Thanos once more, now together, and wielding the red Infinity Wand. Professor Wolf is struggling to simply turn Thanos and his minions to dust, but it’s one Infinity Wand up against another. As the two Infinity Wands blast against each other, a light begins to glow in the middle of the two spells. Bruce suddenly hears a familiar voice, half in his head. “Bruce, give someone else a turn.” Natasha–or a ghostly version of her–is emerging from the middle of the two Infinity Wands’ spells. “Priori Incantatem!” shouts Shuri, from her blue-and-silver panther broom. “Or something like it! Two sets of Infinity Stones blasting against each other, their past spells are regurgitating!” The moment of shock distracts Bruce long enough for Thanos to blast him to the ground. The grape bastard is about to pick up the other Infinity Wand, but spirit-Nat delivers a kick to his face. It’s not a huge amount of damage–she only has the typical strength of a very angry poltergeist–but it buys enough time for Spidey to swing by and snag up the wand with his web, and the battle continues...

Epilogue

Bruce, Sam and Bucky have a brief scare, when it seems that Steve has massacred the timeline for personal gain; but this false Steve turns out to be only a Boggart. The real Steve has returned just a few minutes after schedule, and has only made one tiny change to the timeline; saving Nat.

Professor Wolf is now in the dungeons of Hogwarts, teaching Potions. Bruce can alternate between any of his three forms at will, and actually tends to teach in his boring, adorkable human form (with only the green tail).

Wand, broom, etc. Ollivander has crafted for Bruce a wand from a branch of the Whomping Willow, the only wood green-Bruce can't instantly snap in half. It contains a unicorn hair. Bruce's broom is a Tinderblast; though not as fast as some other models, it's highly resilient, so Bruce can ride it even if he transforms. Bruce's Patronus is a bear (all Patronuses are silver, so Black, Brown, or Polar isn't really a factor here). His specialty, obviously, is potions--his initial first-year accident notwithstanding. A/N: Bruce was blessedly easy to sort, draw, and write a Potter AU for. Tony and Dr. Strange are too overflowing with Slytherin-style heroism for me to let them go to waste as Ravenclaws, just because they happen to be geniuses. Bruce on the other hand, his personality and powers really do revolve around his mind--even his Hulk related ones.f

#bruce banner #hulk #hogwarts house #ravenclaw #werewolf #chibi #hogwarts #potterverse #harry potter #order of the avengers #incredible hulk #mark ruffalo

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