emmeline danvers-vance. (heyvancey) wrote in valloic, @ 2022-04-26 09:48:00 |
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Entry tags: | !: action/thread/log, marvel: carol danvers, ₴ inactive: emmeline vance |
“A dream, but not.” Emme muttered the words under her breath as she looked around the Gryffindor Common Room. A warm fire crackled in the fireplace, the overstuffed furniture invited her to sink down into them. This wasn’t the common room as it was in Vallo. This was Gryffindor tower as it had been back in her school days. The days that, despite a looming war, had been some of the happiest of her life. She ran her fingers along the back of one of the couches, and stopped to look over some unfinished Transfiguration homework that someone had left out on one of the tables, along with a half-eaten chocolate frog. After a moment of basking in fond memories of study groups, games of wizard snap, and debates over the merits of Bowie vs Mercury, Emmeline turned toward the staircase that led up to the dormitories. She inhaled deeply as she turned the door of her old dormitory. The swell of emotions in her chest was not unexpected as she looked around the room. Her record player and box of records took up her bedside table. Her bed was mostly made, but in such a way that she was certain she’d run out in a hurry that morning. Lily’s Star Wars poster was spellotaped to the wall, and a neat stack of journals and books were placed underneath. Hestia’s bed was neat as a pin with her stuffed cat sitting on top. (All the girls were extremely protective of Sir Whiskers.) Then there was Marlene’s bed, a handmade quilt folded at the foot, and pictures of her friends and family prominently displayed everywhere. Seeing it all made a lump form in her throat. She cleared it away resolutely and went over to straighten out the covers on her bed. Then she promptly rumpled everything up again by laying down horizontally across it. She stared up at the maroon colored canopy and sighed. “I miss you.” “Miss you too, you bloody sad sack,” a voice replied just a moment later. The voice was accompanied by a familiar smile and amused blue eyes looking down on her from above. Marlene reached down to playfully tap on Emme’s forehead with two fingers, then bracketed her head with two fists and finished up with a brief kiss on her nose. “Don’t mope around so much, Vanceypants. It’s unattractive.” She was teasing, of course. Marlene knew Emmeline Vance better than anyone, knew how tightly she held onto her emotions, built a steel cage around her heart. She had been there to see the very beginnings of it, and she knew it was in part her death — followed by Lily, James, very nearly Harry — that had contributed to its very quick completion. She hated it, quite frankly. Seeing her afraid to open her heart so long was a fate she hadn’t deserved. “Now, get up and give me a hug, yeah? Maybe tell me about the Fountain of Youth you’ve clearly found in that crazy alternate universe you’re in now.” A bubble of laughter escaped her lips as the sound of her old nickname collided with Marlene’s particular brand of teasing. Her eyes may have stung slightly from tears, but they were the good sort. Emme immediately got back to her feet and rushed to sweep her old friend up into her arms with the requested hug. It was still a dream, but Marlene felt so real and solid within the hug. Emme squeezed a bit too tightly, perhaps. She always had such a unique scent about her, and it washed over Emmeline like a wave. She’d nearly forgotten it. “I was hoping you’d turn up.” Marlene had a few inches on Emme — her entire family ran tall, and she had been a bit above average height for a woman at 5 foot 7 — but that didn’t stop her from absolutely sinking into her embrace. She’d rarely felt safer than she felt with Emme, and while she didn’t quite understand how this little dream jaunt was happening, she wasn’t foolish enough to turn down the opportunity. It wouldn’t last forever, she could already feel that much, see it in the way the edges of things seemed to be just a bit smudged, but she would take advantage of it while it lasted. “You know me, I hate to disappoint.” She pulled back, cupping Emmeline’s face in both hands and examining her with dramatically furrowed brows. “Right, seriously. Explain to me how you got even hotter in your old age, hm? And tell me how much you missed me a bit more. I appreciate a good ego boost.” She laughed again, and her cheeks ached slightly from the wide smile that refused to leave. “I’m like the finest of wines, Marlikins. I only get better with age.” She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously, then smirked. “Or maybe it’s all the trauma. I can never remember which.” A thought jumped into her head and Emmeline’s eyes lit up. “Do you think our secret liquor stash is still in here?” “Ah, classic Emme,” Marlene chuckled, letting her best friend out of her grasp at the mention of liquor. She didn’t drink much these days - couldn’t, being dead and all. Now would be the perfect opportunity to indulge again, wouldn’t it? Emmeline always was the smart one. “Guess there’s only one way to find out, yeah?” Eyes sparkling with mischief, Emme darted towards the corner of the room with the energy of a teenager. Being here in their old dorm, with her best friend, she felt lighter than she had in decades. It took her a moment, but she found the old floorboard they’d pried loose in their third year. It had become a communal hiding place for them. A place to share secrets and keep them safe. In their later years, it has become an excellent stash for alcohol that the Marauders managed to smuggle into the castle for them. Once she’d loosened the board, she pulled it free and grinned over at Marlene. “We’re in luck, babes.” A few moments later she was standing with a bottle of Elderflower wine, Ogden’s Old Firewhiskey, and a bag filled with various sweets from Honeydukes. It was like Christmas morning. “Fancy a drink and a catch up?” While Emme went on the hunt for their old hiding spot, Marlene settled back into her old bed, surrounded by pictures of her old friends and family members smiling and waving at her. Her eyes fell on a picture of her parents - her dad, before he got ill - and her heart hurt a bit. Her entire family was gone now, just like she was. Death Eaters had taken them all out in one fell swoop - called them ‘blood traitors’ and wiped out even the youngest and most innocent. The hazards of war, unfortunately. Here, though, she didn’t need to worry about such things. The past was past (even though they seemed to be in the past, in a way). She liked seeing Emme smile like that, triumphant and free like when they were teenagers, not adults thrust into the shark-infested waters of war and espionage. She deserved that, after everything she’d been through. She deserved everything good she was getting these days. “Not sure I’ve got much to catch you up on,” she admitted with a wry smile and a raised brow, reaching for the bottle of firewhiskey. She cracked it open smoothly and took a swig, making a face as it burned its way down. “But I want to hear all about you, and this place you’re in now. Seems like constant madness.” Emme handed over the whiskey willingly and sat herself down next to Marlene on the bed. She tossed the bag of sweets between them and opened the wine for herself. Not bad she thought to herself. Her taste in wines had changed a lot since her dormitory days, but it was decent enough. Definitely not the most important part of this visit, anyway. “You have no idea.” She gave her head a shake. “I’ve been sent to the past, attacked by murderous birds and robots….not at the same time.” She took another swig from the wine bottle. “Even met my future daughter.” Given they’d dealt with murder far too long and far too early in their lives, Marlene thought murderous birds and robots sounded unpleasant, to say the last. But, given it was after transport to some unknown alternate universe, perhaps that was just how things went. She couldn’t say for sure, but Emmeline had clearly escaped unscathed, which - of course she had. She had always been the strongest of them. The trip to the past, not so bad, but it was that last bit there that caught her attention. Her eyebrows shot up and she offered out the bottle of firewhiskey for an exchange, if Emme was so inclined. “Oh really?” She cocked her head curiously, as if evaluating the other woman. “I can see that. You’d be a good mum. Tell me about her?” “Her name,” Emme paused for dramatic effect, “is Marley. And she certainly lives up to her namesake in every way. From driving me a bit mad, to making me love her so much that I can hardly breathe.” Marlene’s eyes lit up and she immediately smiled widely. Talk about an ego boost - her chest puffed out a bit with pride. Any touch of disappointment she’d felt (because Emme had a kid with someone else and that sort of sucked) was washed away knowing Emme had named her daughter after her. Too bad this was a one-off visit; she’d spoil that little girl rotten if she were around and never let her mum hear the end of it. “As she bloody well should,” she declared, taking another swig of the firewhiskey because that was certainly news worth celebrating. “Wouldn’t be my namesake if she didn’t torment you a little bit, yeah?” Emme knew that Marlene would enjoy that bit of news. She basked in the smile and the feeling of just getting to share this moment together. “Oh absolutely, we named her very well. We had about two weeks with her before she was sent back to her own time, but she kept us on our toes every single minute. In the best possible way, of course.” She raised the wine bottle to her lips again and took another slug. “I wish you could meet her.” She sighed a little, some of her exuberance dimmed as she remembered that all of this was only temporary. “I wish you could see it all. Vallo is far from perfect, but I’m so happy there. Happier than I ever thought I would be again.” Being here was nice, something Marlene could tell Emme needed and that she certainly wasn’t going to turn down herself. It wasn’t often you got pulled back from the dead for a dream walk down memory lane with your best mate, after all. But knowing there was an end down the road did take a little bit of the shine off, she felt it, too. But she wouldn’t allow Emme to get down about it so quickly - not on her watch. “Well, tell me all about it,” she encouraged. She set the firewhiskey down on the bedside table and grabbed for a Pumpkin Pasty, tearing the packaging open and ripping one of the tiny pastries in half to share with Emmeline. “You keep using the royal we, so let’s hear it. Who’s the lucky lady? Or bloke - don’t want to assume.” Emme’s cheeks tinged with just a bit of pink. She busied herself for a moment, placing her wine beside the whiskey and accepting the other half of the pasty. “Her name is Carol Danvers. She’s American, and she’s amazing. We met eight months ago, and I genuinely tried to keep things casual between us. I didn’t want anything serious, but I fell head over heels for her anyway. Couldn’t help myself.” She took a bite of the pasty and chewed slowly, trying to gauge Marlene’s response. Marlene would absolutely deny it, but hearing Emme gush about this new girl of hers came with a bit of a sting. It passed quickly, though, and if there was one thing she was very skilled at, it was expertly masking those silly emotions. All she wanted was for Emme to be happy, and it was very clear how happy she was in this moment. She could see it, feel it, and that was all that mattered. “An American,” she repeated, a lascivious smirk curling her lips. “Going exotic, Emme? Very adventurous of you.” It was all in good fun, though - she’d never been across the pond herself, but she had no grudges against the States. She softened quickly, reaching out to place her hands on Emme’s knees. “This Carol Danvers must be something special if she snagged you. Wish I could meet her, see if she’s up to snuff.” Emmeline’s already pink cheeks deepened in colour as Marlene teased her. If she only knew. At that thought, Emme tilted her head. “Actually,” she drew the word out, her mind considering the options. “Maybe you can?” She’d been pulled into Carol’s dream to meet Talos after all. Perhaps it might work the other way around as well. She closed her eyes for a moment and touched her fingers to the necklace pendant that hung just below the hollow of her throat. She focused her thoughts on Carol, hoping to somehow will her into being. A moment later Emme’s eyes flew open at a sound coming from the hallway. She hopped off the bed and threw the door open to see her one and only Carol Danvers standing there. “Just dropping in?” Carol knew where she was the second she was pulled there. She’d been through Hogwarts as it currently stood in Vallo a handful of times before with Emmeline. Magic wasn’t her thing, but that didn’t mean the castle itself wasn’t ridiculously cool. The moving stairs gave her a headache, but thankfully, she could fly wherever she damn well pleased without their assistance. This time, she’d just sort of phased in, like Emme had phased into her dream with Talos. Her landing had lacked her usual amount of gracefulness, however, and she was rubbing the elbow that had hit the wall when Emme opened the door. She’d thought she was done with this particular phenomenon, but what the hell. One last hurrah, right? And for Emme, there was nothing she wouldn’t do - even, apparently, invading her dreamscape to say hi. “I believe I was summoned,” she replied with a grin, leaning in for a quick kiss. “Do I get to come in and get an introduction or do you just want to make out here? I’m good either way.” As if Emme’s cheeks weren’t already flushed enough. She gave Carol a good natured eye roll and a quick kiss hello before she pulled her into the dormitory. “Carol Danvers, this is my one and only Marlene McKinnon. Mar, this is my girlfriend, Carol.” My one and only. Carol raised a brow but didn’t comment whereas Marlene couldn’t help herself. “Bloody right, your one and only. Lovely to meet you, Danvers.” She smiled, wide and pleased, as she bounced to her feet to greet Carol Danvers. There were similarities between the two of them, and that wasn’t lost on her. Emme had a type - tall, blonde, and a bit of a shit, apparently. “You too,” Carol replied, giving Marlene’s hand a firm shake. She grinned when she didn’t back down and returned it just as firmly. “Emme talks about you all the time. It’s good to finally meet the legend in person.” Oh, that did nothing but further stoke Marlene’s ego. Her head was going to grow so large it might explode if this kept up. “The legend. Emme really talked me up, hm? She’s not wrong, of course. I am pretty legendary, aren’t I, love?” Merlin help her, what had she done. These two egos in a single room? Emme clutched at her throat and feigned gasping for air. “Can’t…breathe…..ego taking up….too…much….air.” She collapsed dramatically against her old bed before peeking through her air at the two most important women in her life. “For the record,” she clarified with a grin as she straightened herself up into a proper sitting position. “I never said legend.” “And what harm, exactly, would it have done you to let me believe you had?” Marlene retorted. She strolled back over to the bed to sit down beside Emme, leaning back onto her elbows and pouting up at her dramatically. “Hey, anyone who’s worth naming our kid after might as well be a legend,” Carol chimed in, unhelpfully, stepping forward to lean against one of the tall bedposts. She eyed the pile of sweets that were still piled up on the next bed over. “Planning on sharing those?” Marlene looked over, then waved a hand in Carol’s direction. “Help yourself, Danvers.” “Try one of the Fizzing Whizzbees,” Emme volunteered. The sherbet balls would cause the person sucking on them to float a few inches off the ground. Obviously this wouldn’t be anything even remotely new for Carol, but Emme figured her girlfriend might find the novelty of floating via magical sweet amusing. She looked back over to Marlene, starting to worry that their time here was coming to a close. “Do you think if I just hang on to you tightly enough, I can just bring you back with us?” Carol nodded and wandered over to sort through the horde of magical candies, leaving Emme in Marlene’s hands for the time being. She was glad to meet someone so important to Emme, but she didn’t want to infringe on their time together. She knew for a fact how fleeting it felt, even if more time passed in the dream than outside. Marlene, meanwhile, gazed up at Emme, all of that egotistical facade fading away. “You can try. But I think we both know we won’t be that lucky,” she murmured, reaching up to cup the other woman’s cheek with one hand. Her lips quirked upward, just briefly, into a sad little smile. “I love you, Emkins. You know that, yeah?” None of it would ever be enough for Emmeline. She was grateful for this, of course, but she wanted so much more. She wanted for Carol and Marlene to really get to know one another- to be friends and gang up on teasing her. She wanted Marlene to meet Marley. She wanted to see Marlene get to grow old. This slice in time was wonderful and meant the world to her, but it could never satiate the Marlene McKinnon shaped void in her life. Emme reached out and pulled Marlene up and into a tight hug. No, they wouldn’t be that lucky, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t try anyway. “I love you too, Marlikins. Always will.” She could feel the tears stinging at her eyes now. “Always will,” Marlene echoed, wrapping her arms tight around Emme and turning her head to kiss her temple. Beside them, the Fizzing Whizzbees had kicked right in for Carol and lifted her a couple inches off the ground. She looked unimpressed and had started unwrapping another sherbet ball. “Hey, if I eat, like, ten of these, will I hit the ceiling? Because this is just pathetic,” Carol remarked. There was a pause, her brows furrowing, before she followed up with a somewhat apologetic, “No offense.” Marlene laughed, pulling back and taking Emme’s chin in her hand, blue meeting blue. “Hold onto this one, alright? She’s a fucking disaster, but that’s always been your niche, hasn’t it? I like her. And I like seeing you happy.” Emmeline gave a soft snort of laughter at Carol’s response. It was a moment of much needed levity, as she was certain without it she may have burst into tears right there. She’d been about to reply with something sarcastic when Marlene tugged her chin and their eyes met. She pressed her lips together and inhaled through her nose, all in an attempt to keep her expression from cracking. She didn’t want this moment to end with her falling to pieces. “Disasters are always the most interesting.” She leaned in and kissed Marlene’s forehead. “I will, I promise.” Emme looked over to her levitating girlfriend perusing more of the snacks, and back to her dearest friend. “Just promise me that if you ever feel a tug from an otherworldly plane, that you come and join us, yeah? I know you’d love it there.” “Otherworldly tug, got it. I won’t pass it up,” Marlene promised. She looped her arms around Emme’s shoulders and rested their heads together, watching Carol pop yet another Fizzing Whizzbee into her mouth. She seemed gravely determined to get more than a few inches off the ground, but she was going to be deeply disappointed. It was funny to watch, really. “Hey, Danvers.” Carol’s head lifted and she drifted closer, hand wrapped around one of the bedposts. “You take care of my girl, hm?” “I will,” she replied seriously, then grinned over at Emme. “I’m not going anywhere, not if I can help it. And I won’t let anything happen to her.” Vallo liked to play games with them. There was no way to make a promise of that magnitude and keep it. She would try, though, and fight like hell to make sure Emmeline stayed safe and alive. A part of her was terrified she’d lose her at some point, knowing she was gone back home, but all she could do right now was hope for the best. And she wasn’t above picking a fight with Vallo. She could absolutely beat up a pocket universe - or whatever the hell Vallo was. Emme smiled up at Carol with enough love that little hearts should have been dancing around her head. Her own heart was heavy, but full. She wished they could stay here longer, but she could already tell their time was coming to a close. She wrapped her arms around Marlene’s middle and gave her a side hug. “I’m good, I promise. I’m happy and have an amazing life ahead of me there.” For all its downsides, Emme would never want to be anywhere else than Vallo. “Still miss you, though.” One last ego boost for the road. She smiled at Marlene, then looked back over to Carol again. Two of the brightest, messiest people she’d ever known. She loved them more than she could adequately say. She stood up and pulled Marlene up to her feet as well. “I have an idea. Mar, grab the whiskey.” While Marlene headed for the liquor, Emmeline strode quickly back over to their secret hiding space. After a moment of rummaging around, she triumphantly stood back up with three shot glasses in hand. “I’d say a toast for this occasion is in order.” Marlene poured the firewhiskey, Emme passed around the glasses. “To us.”
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