cape_kore | Bruce Banner | 011

[OOC: tw for discussion of dead bodies and fatal injuries.]

Update on the dead body found in the fountain the other day.

It belongs to Maria Smith. You might remember her as the ever-so-friendly science teacher who turned out to be secretly working for the scientists keeping us here. Secret, anyway, until she broke cover on the network and gave us all kinds of information?

[ Bitter? Maybe. Maybe a little. Is he rethinking how he feels about some people here? Not really, not yet, but now the possibility exists, and he's... unsure how to take it. Bruce adjusts his glasses and starts reading from the report in his hand. ]

She'd been dead for several days by the time her body was left for us to find. She was severely beaten and died of blunt force trauma to the head. The scene of her murder has yet to be found, but I haven't exactly been looking. Anyone think they found it?

Also, uh, anyone think they know who did it? I have my suspicions in the form of her former employers and our current gatekeepers, but I'm occasionally too much of a conspiracy theorist.

[OOC again: replies will be slow, and tag in as late as you'd like. <3]

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[ He definitely does find it a lot funny when he can make Tony unravel like that. It's also pretty ego-boosting, which maybe sounds awful, but Bruce's ego is small enough that it's nearly invisible. It could stand for a little attention. His eyes are bright with amusement as he waits for Tony to talk around his distraction, and then they somehow manage to get brighter. ]

You... What? [ Bruce manages to hold off a second longer, but then he starts laughing, light and easy, and he leans back in his chair, tilting his head back. That's it, that's his answer. ]

[ On the one hand, Tony likes when Bruce laughs. The sound of it, the way he looks, the fact that he’s relaxed enough to do it in the first place. On the other, he’s laughing at him, which ordinarily might be cause for ruffled feathers and a sarcastic remark or two. Now, he just sighs and adopts a put-upon mien. ]

Okay, laugh it up.

[ But he’s not offended. As he leans back onto his hands on the table, Tony can’t resist smiling just a little. ]

But listen, we need defenses, right? Protection. Something that can detect when things aren’t right. Animals can do that. They used to take canaries in mines to find gas leaks. Ancient people domesticated dogs to see and hear what they couldn’t. It might work here, which was the original idea. Cats, wolves, they’re social animals. They can be trained to help us. Which was why I suggested the cat thing in the first place.

Wow, you are really good at talking people into things. [ Not that Bruce is convinced; he just appreciates Tony's bullshitting skills and how they spill over into almost legitimate points. He stands up and sits on the table beside Tony, leaning over into his space. ]

You're potentially crazy, and I'm crazy for you.

[ He'll take his kiss now, and even when it ends, he leaves their shoulders touching, staying close. ]

Is there any way I can convince you that this is a horrendous idea, or am I going to have to start looking for enough sedatives and tranquilizers to knock out a saber-tooth cat?

[ Thoughts of saber-tooth cats scatter at the kiss, and he’s happy to get lost in it. Until Bruce pulls away, leaving him half-tempted to drag him back in for another one. ]

We could try some sexy persuasion — [ He waggles his eyebrows, before lifting them up and tipping his head to the side, giving Bruce his best attempt at a puppy face. ] — but that’s just me trying to take advantage. Tranquilizers and sedatives. Please?

[ He follows it up with a nudge in Bruce’s side. ]

Come on, Bruce. Remember when you were a kid and wanted a dinosaur? [ He wanted a dinosaur, so he’s operating under the assumption that every other kid did too. ] Well, this is… not at all like a dinosaur. But it’s close. Ish. It’ll be fun. And fascinating. And, I mean really, what’s the point of being us if we can’t have a little fun with it?

[ He almost laughs again at the eyebrows, but the fact that Tony's seriously trying to capture and tame a wild, prehistoric cat settles in, and it dampens the mood. He sighs, watching Tony finish his spiel from under his hair. Finally, he nudges him back. ]

If you get yourself killed, I'll never forgive you. And it's not like this place is ideal for surgery.

So yes, I'll get you mountains of stuff to hopefully knock the thing out so it doesn't eat you. You're... using the -- the Hulk to hunt one down?

Oh please. Like I’m really going to go run off and die now that I’ve got something to stick around for.

[ He says it lightly, like a joke, but he’s serious. Having something - or in this case, someone - to fight for, stay for, makes him a hell of a lot less reckless with his life. ]

Sort of. I mean, I figure that’ll be a good reward for listening to me talk at him, right? I yammer on for a few minutes, then once I shut up, we go knock down some trees and cat-wrangle.

I guess. In this case, you know better than I do.

[ When it comes down to it, Bruce barely knows the other guy. He knows his rages, but he has to admit the last few times were different. It's not like he can ever really have a conversation with him, not the way Tony does.

He just... really hopes Tony will take good care of himself. He leans over until he can rest his lips against Tony's shoulder, letting his thoughts pool for a moment. When he talks, he doesn't really lift his head, so he mumbles against Tony's shirt. ]

I wish I could be there too.

[ Curving his arm around Bruce’s shoulders, Tony takes a moment to simply hold him in silence. He wishes Bruce could be there, too. That he’d remember what he said and did as the Hulk. Maybe with enough practice, he could, but Tony doesn’t think he’d go for that. And honestly, he doesn’t know if he wants him to try. Scientifically, yes. Because he wants what’s best for Bruce, yes. But on a selfish personal level, Tony doesn’t want to give up any more time with him than he has to.

He turns his head and presses his lips to the top of Bruce’s head. It’s kind of like a kiss, kind of just touching in the hopes of being a comfort. When he speaks, he doesn’t lift his head either. ]

You will be there. And I’ll relive the whole damn thing with you, see if I can’t help jog your memory a little.

[ Bruce really isn't so sure what it would mean to remember everything the Hulk sees. When he's calm, maybe, but when he's raging -- does Bruce really want to be able to experience that and remember it?

He wraps his arm around Tony's back, returning the embrace, and he finally moves, turning his head so he can actually talk. ]

You're not looking to do it now, right? We can go home and be... us for a while?

[ He can't help laughing just a little at that, a quiet, kind sort of laughter that's more a huff of breath than anything else. ]

Like I'm going to say no to that? Come on. I'd say yes even if my life depended on getting a cat right this second. Which, for the record, it doesn't.

[ Giving his shoulders a squeeze, he nods. ]

So in answer to your question, Doctor Banner, yes. We should go home and be us.

Bruce Banner | 011 | Video

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