Zari Tarazi (thedragongirl) wrote in momadness_log, @ 2021-07-14 20:01:00 |
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Entry tags: | dc: zari tarazi, marvel: bucky barnes |
WHO: Zari Tarazi and Bucky Barnes (MCU)
WHAT: IIIIIIIT'S Zari!!
WHEN: July 14
WHERE: The Portal Room
RATING/STATUS: Low, Legends of Tomorrow spoilers abound/Complete
"Oh, my god, I am never getting the smell of small town Cowboyville out of my hair. Gidget, can you remind me to pick up some Kicky Karma air diffusers when we pop back to 2042?"
Zari paused, waiting for Gideon to remind her yet again that the AI wasn't her personal assistant, but the room was quiet. And a different shade of metal. The first stirrings of unease went through her, so she did what she did best. Her ever-present phone was already out; with just a flick of her finger, the camera was on and recording. "Hi, Z Nation. It's me, you're girl, coming at you from—well, to be determined. Let's see what we can find out!"
She started toward what looked like a door, determined to solve whatever new mystery the universe seemed content to throw at her.
By now, Bucky felt he had seen it all. Zombies, dinosaurs, he’d chased a witch down the hall, and had punched a former version of himself at least once. But seeing the girl come out of the portal with her phone and casually walking toward the door, he sighed and glanced at his partner.
“Guess it’s my turn?” He knew it was. Grumbling, Bucky stepped out toward the door. Tony had created an observation room, a place to watch for danger before they approached anyone new. This girl didn’t look dangerous, but Bucky was always on guard.
“Not so fast.” The door opened and Bucky stepped in giving the girl a once over then nodding.
Why did he get the feeling this was one of those people used to portal travel? “Gotta screen you before we set you loose- usually when people come through there they’re more confused than anything- what are you doing?” He frowned at the camera, confused.
It took from the man's appearance to his last question for Zari to go from staring and filming to grinning and filming. "Oh," she breathed, "sweet, merciful Beebo—I'll edit that out later, trademark, you know, their people still aren't budging on a sponsorship. Z-babies, I cannot fully describe the gorgeousness in front of me right now. The camera is not at all sufficient to capture that jawline or those eyes."
She tapped the screen to pause it and gave him a dazzling smile. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Have you seen you? My viewers are going to eat you up. By the way, when are we? And where? I mean, the shirt says late 'teens, early 'twenties, but this set up says T-B-D. Could be anywhere." A tiny gasp left her, and she looked around excitedly. "Is this a future upgrade?"
Poor Bucky was left speechless as she evaluated him, taking a second to figure out what she was talking about before he realized she was objectifying him to the camera. “Uh...No? Wait- you’re from the future. Okay, that explains some things.” Maybe, not really. Bucky frowned again. “So what’s with the camera?”
He was choosing to ignore the part with her checking him out for now. 80+ years ago, yeah he’d be into that kind of thing. But these days he wasn’t sure whether or not flirting was a good thing, especially considering recent events around the facility.
“The year is 2018. This is the Avengers Facility. Do you know about the Avengers where you’re from?” It was a good test to see if she was even from this universe. “What year did you say you were from again?”
He was kind of hoping it wasn’t too far off. He was getting used to seeing futuristic people popping in, but it was always awkward showing them the tech. Same with people from the distant past.
"Those are a lot of questions, but my memory is so excellent." Zari flashed him a grin, and then started firing her answers off on her fingers. "First of all, this is for my vlog and the 'gram and my millions of followers. You're going to be so popular in my time. Too bad I can't just stop you right there, preserve you for future generations. Second, that's a no on the Avengers, 'though it sounds like some kind of superhero or vigilante group? We have a few of them where I'm from, lots of Leagues and Legions and Societies. I'm a Legend myself. As to when I'm from, well, it's kind of complicated. Originally, it's 2042 for me, but I've spent some time in the 2020s, and I just came from 1891. And there was my trip to Versailles during the French Revolution. Marie Antoinette is my girl. Well, before she lost her head. And then she was kind of a pain. It was a whole thing. Now, can I ask you about you? And this place? What's up with, you know, all of it?"
He just nodded, staring at her as she started talking about things he did not understand (he barely had an online presence- for obvious reasons considering his current status). “2042.”
It wasn’t too far off, but sounded like she was one of those time travellers. He made a mental note and would ask more about that part later, but that wasn’t his job. Right now, he was welcoming her to her new home and getting that all sorted out.
“Yeah. Sounds interesting. This is the Avenger’s Facility. That,” he nodded to the portal behind her. “Brought you here. We’re not sure how they work, but we’re not able to get you home yet. Tony’s working on it.”
He handed her the data pad with the email and information using his metal hand- it was pointless to keep it covered at this rate. “You’re going to want to input your info here, but basically I’m James Barnes: one of the uh...welcoming committee here.”
He gave her a second. “Some people call me Bucky, in case you see that on there. Anyway, there’s a lot of people like you who have been brought through those portals. Most of them are settling in. First few weeks you’ll probably stay here and have a chance to adjust, but we have a few places you can move to if you’re interested after that.”
His version of "interest" was one she'd encountered many times before, which made it easy to overlook it. From the sound of things and the email she quickly perused, weird was blasé around here anyway. Her fingers flew over the tablet as she entered her info, but it was just one more distraction at her disposal as she wrestled with the idea that she might be stranded. Away from the other Legends. Away from her brother. She took in a quiet breath. One crisis at a time. That's what she did now. It was totally fine.
"Let's stick with James," she said, handing the tablet back without even a batted lash at the unusual prosthetic. Some things were okay to stare at and point out. Other things were so completely gauche. Her smile made its triumphant return as she held out her hand. "Unless you prefer Bucky. I'm Zari. Or Z. Or Dragon Girl. Whichever you're vibing with in the moment. So, James, are you stuck here doing the welcoming, or can you me around? I mean, I'm not averse to the idea of 'have map, will travel,' but I can't be held responsible for any trouble I might get into."
“I can show you around,” Bucky eyed her as she handed him back the data pad and explained. “That’s yours to keep. You can communicate with it. Kind of like that phone of yours.” At least she wasn’t completely blown away by everything around here. That was kind of a relief, since he wasn’t having the best week.
“Come on, I can at least show you the common areas. Pepper will get you a room soon- she’s kind of the person in charge of that sort of thing.”
Easiest way to explain it. “Why Dragon Girl?”
She made a small noise of interest before sliding the data pad into her back pocket with practiced ease. Maybe it was the modern-to-her fabric, but it fit perfectly. She'd learn the ins-and-outs of the new device soon enough, but for now she kept her own phone in hand. There was no way Zari was going to miss out on anything fun or noteworthy. "Pepper? What a fun name! I'll bet she's hot, too. She sounds hot. Competent people are so sexy, don't you think? I'll bet you're super competent."
Only her respect for personal space and autonomy and the all-powerful notion of consent kept her from taking his arm like some kind of entitled debutant. There were lines she would not cross, and that was one of them. Still, maybe she lingered just a touch closer than was strictly necessary as they left the room and started down the corridor. Zari laughed quietly and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Oh, you know how it is. Girl goes to a crazy pop up amusement park with her parents, someone unleashes a pack of magical creatures on the audience of the circus, including the aforementioned dragon. Well, it turns out that the girl—it's me, you get that right?—she'd been raising said dragon's egg before then and took care of the baby when it hatched.
"And then some deranged fairy godmother captured it, aged it up, and unleashed it on the captive audience. And me, being the precocious little nugget that I was, hopped right down into the center of the ring and convinced the dragon to stop attacking and start dancing instead. Naturally, it went viral, and the name stuck. I'm literally the girl that tamed the dragon. Now, how about you tell me how you got 'Bucky' from either James or Barnes, because I'm just not seeing the connection. And what exactly is the reason for this—" she flicked her fingers toward his face— "thousand yard stare thing you've got going on when you're not looking at me?"
Bucky knew girls like this one back in his youth. And back then, he’d have taken her on his arm and shown her a good time around town- they’d have definitely ended the night happy. But she was way too young for him and he was no longer that guy.
Now, he just awkwardly nodded and tried to smile when she talked about raising baby dragons because, why not? He’d seen crazier shit. Maybe.
Look, there were dinosaurs last week and that really should spell it out for them.
“Huh.” No one had asked him that in a long time. He was just kind of known as “Bucky” without question. “It’s from my middle name- Buchanan,” he started. “My best friend started calling me that when we were kids. But I used to threaten to beat up people who used it and weren’t named Stevie.” He smiled.
“These days, it’s spread too far and you get tired after the first six or seven.” He was joking, of course. Bucky was just what everyone knew him by and it was easier than correcting them. Now James almost felt like the special name. James was what his mom called him. James was what Natasha had called him.
He made a face. “What look?”
His non-reaction was better than being laughed at or dismissed outright. Zari wouldn't have necessarily blamed him for either, but she actually appreciated the smile-and-nod approach. And any ruffled feathers would have been easily smoothed out by hearing the frankly adorable origin story about his nickname. Not that she was going to tell him what she thought about it. Most guys seemed to find being called adorable to be emasculating and condescending. "You have a best friend called 'Stevie'? Kind of funny that he went with Bucky and not Jamie, but I guess you had to be there."
She tried not to laugh at the look of displeasure on his face, she really did. It came out anyway as a small titter as they got in an elevator. Zari made a note of the security coded floor buttons before leaning against one of the lift's walls so she could watch him properly again. His smile was pretty great, and she was now somewhat irritated with herself for making it go away. "It's the one that says you've seen some things and lived through worse. You don't look old enough to have that much tragedy under your belt, but I know everyone's mileage varies."
Walking with her, he did his best not to flinch or react too much. She talked a lot, but she didn’t seem that bad. He even smirked and shook his head as she tried to flirt with him. It was tempting to flirt back a little, but there was still that fact that he had a bit of a cloud hanging over his head right now.
“Yeah, well you can ask him that when you see him.” He commented about the name thing.
She asked about his age and he hesitated to answer, wondering how honest he should be. “I’m 101.” Honesty was the best policy, right?
He’d spare her on the tragedy side of it. She could look it up or ask later about what kind of tragedy he’d seen. Probably best not to scare the newcomers on the first day. Hi, I’m Bucky. I am a world-famous assassin who was brainwashed into a dark organization during the war and basically can kill people with my bare hands swiftly and efficiently. Welcome to this universe.
Not the best welcoming line.
"When" not if. That was promising for future information regarding this taciturn mystery. Zari filed it away, but didn't remark on it further. What she couldn't keep from reacting to, however, was the candid dropping of his age, which made her eyebrows jump. She smiled slowly and cocked her head to one side. "I'm sure you hear this all the time, but you don't look a day over 35. If it makes you feel better, I'm the second version of me, after the Legends changed the timeline. We're very different people. The original actually lives in here."
She tapped her totem bracelet. "It's magic, and I couldn't even begin to explain it. And I've probably already filled your brain to bursting. Turn about being fair play, and all. You have social media here, right? The idea of cultivating a new audience is pretty exciting. And doing the super hero thing, if there's time. Does your team have an opening?"
Magic. Great. He stared at the bracelet and sighed. Yeah, he was getting used to all sorts of weird things, that it didn’t even surprise him when she said that or when she didn’t flinch at his age.
“We have magic users here, too,” he nodded to her. Maybe she could explain more to them because Bucky had a hard enough time wrapping his around any of it. “Wait, you said there were two versions of you?” That sounded familiar and he narrowed his eyes on her.
“Different universes?”
"Different timelines, although I suppose the argument could be made that the creation of a new timeline is ultimately the creation of a different universe." Zari shrugged. "Gidget—she's our ship's computer—could probably tell you all the technical stuff, or maybe one of our more science-minded crew. I know just enough to get by. Mind if I ask why?"
“Uh-huh,” he stared at the girl. “Maybe. I’ve known people from different timelines here, and it feels like different universes.” His mind went to Natasha, of course. But there had been others.
But then she asked why he’d asked and he scowled a bit. “...There have been different versions of me that have shown up here before- they’re not here right now. But they were.” Very different. Very uncomfortable.
The way he just stopped mid-sentence spoke volumes for the things he wasn't saying. She leaned away from the wall and put her fingertips on his arm. The metal was warmer and smoother than she expected. It reminded her of Nate, which in turn made her give James a small, knowing smile. "Speaking as the second iteration of me, it's an adjustment, to be sure. Pretty much for all parties involved. But, I'm pretty awesome, so you're mileage may vary."
Her laugh echoed out of the opening elevator doors and into the common area. Zari didn't wait for him before she walked out and took a look around. "Five-star design, I see. Might give me hope for the accommodations themselves, but I'm really only expecting three-star. Most places usually reserve all the pretty and polish for the public facing spaces. Maybe you should show me your room so I can see what I'm getting myself into."
Bucky didn’t react when she touched his arm. He could sense it, but he figured she was one of those touchy-feely kinds of people and he didn’t want to freak her out. He was learning to be better at it himself, since his first reaction to touch these days was to pull away. Something about body autonomy after spending so many years not in control.
He at least smiled at her and stared for a minute. “So you have multiple variations, too?” Huh. That was a new one for him- at least to hear about it from another universe.
The poor guy was clueless, though, when it came to her flirting. He followed her out and shrugged. “It’s not that bad- Tony’s pretty open to decorating if you stick around.” It took him a second, though, to catch onto what she was saying. And his eyes widened for a second then he cleared his throat . “Uh, Pepper is going to probably do that- but show you to your room- not mine.” Shit. What was he saying? Funny thing is 80+ years ago, Bucky would have been all over an offer like that.
But that was before a lot of stuff.
Zari shrugged; she could have gone into the whole thing about her brother dying and how saving him had Butterfly Effected her current self into being, but he hadn't really seemed all that interested in her dragon story so she skipped this particular tidbit. If he wanted to know, he could ask her directly.
His awkwardness was what decided for her, however. She liked him, or the potential was there at least. For now, she put on a pout and sniffed. "Maybe next time, soldier." And then, because she was an unrepentant flirt, she winked. "Now show me more of this wide and wonderful world of yours."