Matt Murdock (saint_matthew) wrote in thedisplaced, @ 2020-02-12 11:08:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log/thread, danny rand / iron fist (616), matt murdock / daredevil (mcu) |
WHO: Matt Murdock (MCU), Danny Rand (616)
WHEN: Monday, February 11th, early evening
WHERE: Matt's apartment
SUMMARY: Matt has invited the newly arrived Danny to come stay with him
WARNINGS: None
Matt had given his address and immediately wondered whether or not this was a good idea, inviting Danny to stay at his apartment until he got his shit together in Tumbleweed. Of course, this wouldn’t be the Danny he knew, but a different version, and alternative universe. It had been curiosity that instinctively inspired him to tell Danny to come over. What would this Danny be like in comparison? Matt was frequently told, by people from Danny’s universe, that their version of Matt Murdock was somebody that needed to be repeatedly punched in the face. In other words, a real jerk. Was that true? Or somebody’s personal opinion based on bad experience? And how different was this Danny to the one he fought beside?
Patiently waiting on the sidewalk in front of his apartment building, cane in hand, he heard a car pull up to the curb, and then the driver repeating his address to the passenger in the back seat: his guest had arrived.
“Yeah, that’s it.” Danny replied as the address was repeated back to him. He reached for his pocket, expecting to find a wallet that wasn’t there. Had he left that back before the… incident? He winced. It was bad manners, and illegal aside, not to pay. “One sec.”
He got out of the cab, and was met with the sight of one Matt Murdock. A bit taller than himself, hair not as red, it was still unmistakably Matt. Just not his Matt. He stared for a few long moments before glancing back to the cab.
“I don’t think I have any money. If you could uh… help out I’ll pay you back. I swear. With interest. I’m sorry.” He glanced back to the car again, as if it might drive away without being paid. He looked back to Matt. “I swear this won’t happen again. It never does. Really.”
Same height as my Danny, was Matt’s first thought. Same voice. He smelled freshly showered - the soap was the stuff they had at the Bureau, so he must’ve done it there - but he put on the clothes he’d arrived with, because they smelled worn (with a little bit of sweat? Had he been exercising before the Portal brought him over? Was it nerves?) No shoe on the sidewalk, so he must be going barefoot.
Matt was so busy processing this information, putting together the pieces of the puzzle that made up this Danny, combined with the recent lack of sleep, caused him to first miss that he was being asked a question. “Huh? Oh. Oh yeah.” He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out his wallet. “Don’t worry. I know you’re good for it. Actually… I don’t carry cash.” There was no way for him to distinguish between different denominations of bills. “Use my bank card. Pin number is 7-5-4-2.”
“Thank you, you’re a lifesaver.” Danny replied as he took the offered card. He moved back to the Uber, and leaning against the window talked the other man through the transaction. He was relieved that he could still pay the other man, although even as he focused on the driver he could feel Matt’s focus on him. It was an unnerving feeling, something more intimate than a mere stare. He knew Matt could hear his heartbeat, which was a bit more rapid than it should’ve been. That Matt could sense the sweat beading on his skin as he straightened and placed the card gently into Matt’s hand.
He shifted out of habit, and hooked his arm around Matt’s as if he meant to guid the other man. It was the way he walked with Matt, his Matt, the sort of detail that helped emphasize Matt’s blindness and draw attention away from the fact he saw more than most people managed. He drew in a slow breath. “So, uh, I have no idea where we’re going. It’s nice to meet you, though. I’m Danny.” As if Matt didn’t know. Matt had been the one to contact him, after all. To offer him a place to stay, company. Some sort of port in the storm of unease that was this whole place. He drew in another slow breath.
“Tell me where to go and I can get us there, though. I think. Assuming there are places to stay in this… mess.” He shifted a little, and his shoulder bumped Matt’s. He looked at the other man quizzically. “This is how you walk, right? Matt used to - you know - to keep people from realizing he could… kind of see. Sonar. Whatever you call it.”
The nervousness that Matt perceived from Danny must be from being put into an embarrassing situation of having to beg for money from a familiar person who wasn’t family anymore, in addition to the general awkwardness of being thrust into this unusual circumstance, out of his control. Matt couldn’t blame him. His own initial reaction had been to assume that he’d been taken in by the Hand, and to try to fight his way out, despite being terribly wounded.
Matt took back his card to put it away in his wallet, but was mildly surprised when Danny took his arm. He was accustomed to being guided before, but rarely did strangers make the offer. While they were not perfect strangers, that was how Matt saw him. The Danny from his universe was not very close, which made Matt think that maybe Danny was good friends with his Matt.
“Hello, Danny. I’m Matt.” It was a little funny to have to reintroduce themselves again, but funnier still when Danny brought up the facade he played. So funny that Matt actually smiled, then chuckled. “Yeah. I do that, too. The others like us, who came here through the Portal, they know my identity and what I can do. But the locals?” He nodded his head in the direction of the uber driver that was just pulling away from the curb. “We try to keep a low profile around them. My apartment is right here,” he added, gesturing to the building behind them.
The outside of the apartment looked normal enough, the architecture in keeping with the rest of the town, and there was nothing to suggest that it would be any different. Up a flight of stairs and down a corridor, Matt opened the door to his place to let themselves in, and only then would Danny realize something very extraordinary was happening. The large, open space of Matt’s New York City apartment fit inside in a way that it shouldn’t. The plate glass windows that took up most of the wall looked out upon the town, but had not been visible from the street. The sun was just setting, and since there were no electric lights on, the apartment was already being cast into shadows.
“Make yourself at home,” he invited, easily navigating his way to the fridge. “Do you drink? I’ve got beer.”
“Do the others know about me?” Danny asked curiously. He wouldn’t be so bold as to assume that they did. While Daredevil had become quite well-known over the years as everything from a hero vigilante to a federal criminal he didn’t think he’d ever quite matched up to him. Not even when he was Daredevil. Not even when he was an Avenger. Daredevil was just something impossible to beat. “It’s all right if they don’t. I’d rather - not be known for some things,” he explained.
He let Matt lead, which was amusing enough for the way he held Matt’s arm. The blind guiding the sighted, it made for an amusing sight until they reached the stairs and he released his grip. Matt didn’t need his help and they weren’t where anyone would see them. He followed quietly, his gaze roaming over Matt as they moved as if he might be able to find the man he knew beneath the slightly unfamiliar facade. He wasn’t finding him. Matt was at once all too familiar and an utter stranger. He wasn’t certain how to take that.
They reached the apartment and passed through the - portal? Dimensional rift? To enter the inside of a New York City building. Danny paused in the doorway as it swung shut behind him. He took in the sight with wonder, and breathed deep but the familiar smell of pollution and people, rain and city streets was absent. He shivered, and slowly walked past Matt up to the window to look out at the incongruous scene. The apartment was familiar enough, but nothing else was.
“So you weren’t lying, I can really get my own place back?” Danny asked in an attempt to make the most of things as Matt entered the kitchen. “This is - majorly weird, I’m not gonna lie. But this is also great. It - means Manhattan isn’t that far away. I mean, where we came from still exists, doesn’t it?” He drew in a slow breath. “I think I’d like that beer,” he said seriously. “If it isn’t too much trouble for you. Do you mind if I take a seat?” He was already moving to the sofa and sitting down, still watching the view from outside the plate glass window. “This is incredible, Matt. Really. It’s - not the same magic or technology that gets me from our world to K’un Lun, but it still seems a bit similar.”
“If you think this is weird, just wait. It’s bound to get weirder.” Matt knew that others introduced themselves to Danny over the Network, so he would be aware that characters he might know from fiction were present, and that he’d been told of some of the strange things currently happening. “If you don’t like the weird that’s going on, if you wait it out long enough, it’s bound to change.”
Didn’t mean it was easy. Or good. Matt had been forcing himself to stay awake for the past couple of days due to nightmares.
“Mi casa es tu casa.” Matt went over to where Danny sat, handed over a cold bottle, then sat on the sofa facing him. “You’re going to find out there’s as many different magic styles here as there are books, movies, and television shows. Including Harry Potter’s magic wands and the Force from Star Wars. Right now it looks like we have a wicked fairy tale queen on our hands.” He smiled, but it was to hide how uncomfortable things were for him.
“A lot of people have shown up, homeless, only later to have their places appear. Not just apartment space, but whole mansions. Palaces, even.”
"A wicked fairy tale queen," Danny echoed. "Sounds about right." He took the offered beer and had a small sip of it. It tended to take a lot to get him drunk, but he was still being careful. "Is Harry Potter here? I loved those movies…" He mirrored Matt's smile, although it soon faltered as he looked at Matt more closely still. More seemed to be wrong with the man than just his lack of red hair.
"The Matt I know would hate it if I asked if something was wrong. Are you the same way?" He asked carefully as he studied Matt's face. It was difficult to tell with the glasses on, but he was guessing Matt had been pushing himself too hard. Forcing his body to exhaustion without regard for his need for sleep, for food. He'd tried to help Matt through times like this enough to recognize some of the signs.
"There's more going on than you're telling me, isn't there?" He asked quietly as he rested the beer against his own thigh. He frowned, and once more looked over his shoulder out the window at the bizarre hellscape they'd come into. "I don't think an evil fairy tale queen would be impossible to defeat. I mean, I've fought frost giants and lords of Hell before. That should count for something, right?"
Before coming to Tumbleweed, the freakiest thing Matt had ever encountered was how the Hand was able to bring people (Elektra) back from the dead. Even when he first heard about it, he couldn’t believe it. Before that, there was the attack on New York City by aliens coming from a wormhole in the sky, but that was so much to process that it was sort of pushed out of the forefront of his consciousness. However, through conversations with people from Danny’s universe, Matt knew that despite some similarities, a lot more freaky things happened there - frost giants, lords of Hell. Danny was taking it all in stride, which Matt decided was a good thing. The Displaced needed this sort of level headed experience.
The question caught Matt off guard, but mostly because of the caring way it was asked. There was something wrong, and for several, uncomfortable moments, he struggled with revealing what it was. Finally, Matt decided that if Danny was going to stay with him, he’d find out sooner or later. With a grimace, he removed his glasses to reveal the exhaustion on his features. It took a few moments more before Matt could tell him what was going on. “I don’t know if it’s a part of the evil fairy tale queen’s doing or not, but… a number of us have been plagued with really intense nightmares. I’ve been trying to meditate at night instead of sleep to get some rest, but…” his sentence trailed off as he shook his head, indicating that it really wasn’t working. “Right now she’s hard to beat, because she’s been hiding behind the scenes. Nobody knows where she’s at, otherwise we’d go after her.”
Danny watched as the red tinted glasses were lowered to reveal what he had come to expect. Exhaustion beneath those pale eyes. He didn’t try to hide the concern in his own expression as he reached out, for a second just gently touching Matt’s cheek before he realized how inappropriate that was. He drew in a slow breath, and focused on the rest of the information. Nightmares. Hiding. Right. That sounded about right for a fairy tale queen, kicking people while they’re down and refusing to show herself until everyone was too exhausted to do anything else.
“Meditation works in a pinch, but it can’t replace actual sleep.” Danny said sadly. “You’re going to need to - need to figure out a way through the nightmares or put a stop to them. You could try knocking yourself out rather than sleeping. That works in some cases, but it wouldn’t be restful and you need rest… I don’t think my own powers would be enough to really help you. I could hypnotize you, try and heal some of the damage you’re doing to your system by not sleeping… but that’s still not sleep.” A small smile tugged at his lips as he looked at Matt again. “You are like him, stubborn asshole. I think it would’ve taken my Matt a few days to even come clean about the not sleeping, though. You guys… you have a way about you.”
He reached for his beer and took another small sip. He’d barely had any of it, was taking his time as he thought. He sniffed, and for a moment wiped at his lips with the back of his hand. “Wouldn’t she just be in her big fairy tale castle, or is that hidden, too?” He asked thoughtfully. “I guess we’re kind of stuck until she decides to show herself. And you - you’re stuck with me. I appreciate you letting me stay here, Matt. Really. It means a lot to have a friend.”
What is he doing? Matt asked himself. While it was unexpected and even a little unnerving, Matt did not flinch from the touch. But it did make him think about what Danny’s expectations might be, staying with him.
“Yeah. I know meditation’s no substitute. But it was worth a shot.” The dreams were intense enough that he would try anything to get around them. “Harry Potter was here before, but not any more. There’s a lot of other people from that universe, though. Wizards and witches. They’ve got this potion, dreamless sleep, that I’ve expressed an interest in getting my hands on. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t want to tell you, but I’m too fucking tired to put up much of a fight.
“Speaking of sleep,” Matt said, getting up out of his seat, taking a swig of beer, then walking across the floor toward the bedroom. “I only have this one bed. I figure since I’m avoiding sleep, you can take it. I changed the sheets, they’re clean. Tomorrow you can go out to buy the things you need, change of clothes, toothbrush, whatever. I’ll introduce you to a couple friends of mine, Ronan and Declan. Brothers. They help drive me around, I’m sure they’ll do the same for you, until you get familiar with the town, get a place of your own.”
The next thing Matt wanted to say was difficult, and he struggled to think of a nice way to say it, but forged ahead. It helped now that he was standing and head placed some more distance between them. “Look. Danny. It’s great having you around. But…” there was an awkward pause. “In my universe, Danny and I? We barely knew one another. We fought side by side a few times, but that’s about it. We never really hung out. I mean, I’m cool with you staying here, I wouldn’t have invited you if it wasn’t cool. But. Whatever relationship you have with Matt in your universe… I’m flattered….but now’s not a good time.”
Danny bit his tongue against the protest that was bubbling up within him. He couldn't take the bed, could he? True, Matt wasn't using it but it seemed like too large a thing to take in spite of it being offered. But it was being offered. He drew in a slow breath and worked to clear his mind. It was all right. All of this was alright.
It was alright until Matt decided to lay down in no uncertain terms the fact they didn't know each other. Danny winced in spite of himself. He sat up straighter as he watched Matt, listening rather than speaking. It made sense, all of it made sense, but it didn't make it easier to hear. Virtual strangers, then. He looked at Matt carefully as he began to speak.
"Matt and I fought together. He went to prison when he was suspected of being Daredevil. Without being asked I took over as Daredevil. Fought as him when all the superheroes started to fight one another. Because it was the right thing to do, it would help clear his name, and he wouldn't have wanted his city to forget the devil. Which is to say I think highly of him, and by extension you. We weren't close, beyond how close you get fighting and nearly dying for someone. But I - get your meaning. I wasn't trying anything, just concerned. That's all."
He moved to stand, feeling awkward being the only one sitting. He shoved his hands in his pocket as he looked past Matt to the bed. "If you want me to have the bed I'll take it. I think you should try the potion if the Potter kids can be trusted. I'm worried about you." He paused. "If you're uncomfortable with me staying here I can find another spot, though. It's - really no trouble."
Matt was glad that he couldn’t see Danny’s reactions because the tone of his voice alone made him feel like a huge jerk. He grimaced and worried his brow while he kept his face directed at the floor in front of him, shifting from one foot to the other, with one hand resting on his hip. Danny’s pulse rose, but by the end of his explanation, it had returned to normal, which Matt interpreted as awkwardness but telling the truth. Matt had estimated Danny’s behavior incorrectly, but in a way he was glad to be clear about things.
“Er… cool. Okay,” he began, sheepishly, not really knowing how to respond. “That’s good to know. Thanks? I mean, for helping out like that?” Having a shift in the conversation helped. “Charlie Weasley, actually. Along with other magic users from different universes. It’s actually a group project, really.”
In response to Danny’s last comment, Matt shrugged and shook his head. “My offer still stands. You’re welcome to stay. So long as you don’t mind the pretty basic living arrangements.”
“Charlie Weasley,” Danny repeated after a moment. “Isn’t the one who was obsessed with dragons? Or was that a different one? Man, it’s been awhile since I saw those movies.” Longer since he’d read the books. It was odd to think that this was the world he now inhabited. “Can’t believe I missed the chance to meet The Boy Who Lived.” He’d beat himself up about that a little, although now he had bigger problems to face. Like the fact he’d be sleeping in Matt’s bed, living with a stranger that he still felt he knew. Navigating those murky waters promised to be difficult, doubly so with the way Matt currently looked.
“It’s all right, you know that, right? I mean. You’re right. We don’t really know each other and I was kind of foolish to act like we did. I’ll uh - I’ll do my best to act better, okay?” He paused. Was this making things worse? It felt like this was making things worse. He shifted his weight to his other foot as he looked back at Matt, the odd expression he couldn’t read on the other man’s face. “I’m sure stuff will feel a bit easier once you get some sleep. I could uh - try to help you sleep. See if some of my abilities help reverse some of the damage you’re doing, but I’m not sure you want me trying it. It’s a kind of intimate thing.”
He shrugged. “As for basic living arrangements, I don’t mind. I grew up in a monastery. I’m pretty used to basic. Your bed looks more comfortable than any I’ve slept in before.”
Stick once complained about how Matt was soft by having sheets that had high thread counts, so Danny’s comment about sleeping in a monastery made him chuckle despite himself. “You can always crash on the couch,” he teased. He lifted his bottle to take a swig of beer, but paused to ask, “How intimate are we talking about?” At this point, he was desperate enough to try just about anything.
"It works by me allowing some of my chi into you," Danny said simply. "Sharing my life essence. It heals, heals a lot of things. I don't think it'll work to make you feel well rested but it could help you feel a little bit better. Just takes a lot out of me to do it. I'm willing to, though, if you want it."
It was intimate. It was something he didn't really hesitate to do anymore, but it was also something he'd not ever done for his Matt. Even when his Matt was near fatally wounded. Matt needed to slow down, to heal. This Matt… who knew. He just wanted to be friendly.
"I'd be fine taking the couch if you could get sleep. I'm not that picky, you know."
“Sharing your life essence sounds pretty intense to me,” Matt replied, rocking his bottle gently back and forth like a pendulum, the only, tiny bit of evidence that he was nervous. “It’s not going to hurt you, will it?”
He couldn’t believe he was entertaining the idea.
“It doesn’t hurt at all,” Danny replied with a small shrug. “It actually feels kind of good, honestly. I don’t know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of it, but from my end it feels nice. It’d - soothe you at least. Calm you down. I’d regain whatever I lost through sleep or meditation. It doesn’t hurt me in the least. If anything is physically wrong with you, it would heal it. That’s how it works. But it wouldn’t heal your blindness, it isn’t… that sort of an experience. That would be different.”
Danny cocked his head to the side as he watched Matt rock. It was an odd experience, talking to a man who both couldn’t see him and saw him better than anyone else ever had or even could. He reached up to scratch at his scruffy cheek, wondering for a moment whether or not he should’ve even brought up this ability. What would Matt think of him if it didn’t work? Then again, he had to offer. He had to try and help if he could.
“Do you want to try it?
Matt had learned to accelerate his own body’s healing process through meditation, but he wasn’t sure whether or not this was the sort of thing that would stop him from having nightmares. It seemed to be more of a magical curse, but since that wasn’t his area of expertise, he really didn’t know. But the hope of a quiet night’s sleep was too much to give up.
WIth a sort of grim determination, Matt took one last swig of beer then said with resolve, “Why the hell not? Let’s do this. What do you need me to do? Lay down?”
“I’d need to have my hands on your head,” Danny said a bit doubtfully as Matt finished his beer. “Since that’s where the trouble is, right? My hands need to be on the wound. What would be a comfortable way for us to do that?” Now that it was really happening he sounded a bit hesitant, if only because he knew the effect it tended to have on people. He’d done it often enough in his world, had healed problems people didn’t even know they had. This was different. This was a near stranger, and someone who’d already accused him of hitting on him.
“I’m not sure what it will do. I want you to know that. It could help you, it could do nothing at all, it could clear up some pain in your back and shoulders you never knew you were experiencing. It isn’t a… sure thing. I’ve neve tried to use it on anything psychological before. I know I can’t use it on stuff like cancer. It’d just make the bad cells replicate faster.”
The more conditions Danny placed upon his power, the more doubtful Matt became. After a long sigh, he frowned and said, “You know… as great as it sounds, I don’t think it’ll help me. My condition’s more along the lines of a wicked witch curse than a physical problem. So unless you’re able to break curses? Thanks for the offer, anyway.”
Danny raised his shoulders in a shrug. He had offered what he could do. Breaking curses was still well beyond his abilities, in spite of how his training with Dr. Strange had been going. He’d wanted to learn more, and was an eager student, but there were limits to how fast and how much one could reasonably be expected to be capable of in such a short time frame. He wondered if the same Stephen had made it here.
“Have you tried going to Dr. Strange?” He asked finally. “He’s good at breaking curses. He’s helped me out a few times. What I can do isn’t much, but the offer is still there if you ever do change your mind.”
“Dr Strange is on the crew developing the dreamless sleep potion. If he was able to break the curse, I’m assuming he’d make that offer. Still, it might not be a bad idea to ask.” It wasn’t too late to try and contact the sorcerer over the network. Besides, he suspected Strange kept late hours, anyway. However, Matt’s hopes were not high. “Uh… let me give you a tour of the apartment first, such as it is. So you can settle in.”
“Okay,” Danny agreed with a small shrug. He’d offered what he could - his healing abilities, his thoughts as to who might be capable of helping Matt. He’d offer more if it came to him, but for now the more polite option seemed to be just going along with Matt and letting the matter drop. He was tired anyway, and more stressed than he’d care to realize. “I’d appreciate a tour.”