Fic: The Hulkover
Title: The Hulkover (AKA Five times Bruce had a Hulkover)
Fandom: Avengers
Characters: Bruce-centric, Avengers
Rating: PG-13 on a bad day?
Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to anything Marvel, this is just for fun.
Summary: Written for a prompt on avengerkink “So the hulkover takes him differently every time. Sometimes he can be up and escaping almost immediately, sometimes he's totally wiped out all the following day. It's affected by how long he was Hulk, how long it's been since he was Hulk last, what were the circumstances, did he let it happen or try to fight it, that kind of thing. But there's a strong element of randomness, too, and this one is worse than it had any reason to be.”
5) The team would be more stunned if it wasn’t for the fact they were so battle weary that all they could do was absently munch on their own food as Bruce scarfed down enough servings to make Thor smile at him. It was a tired smile but still, it was there. Hell, the demi-god even pushed over his own seconds when Bruce’s stomach growled loudly while he was waiting for more. Everyone blinked when he called to the cook in nearly fluent Arabic, Thor seemed oblivious of the confusion though he’d instantly offered his still warm plate and decided he’d rather wait for the cook to prepare more. Knowing they’d probably have to wait until the meat could roast longer since he’d seen them dispose of a picked clean bone, figuring it was their doing.
“Thank you,” Bruce said, smiling softly and devouring the food fast enough to make even Tony forget what he was supposed to be doing, eating, to watch. “It’s been so long since I’ve had an incident I forgot how hungry it can make me…”
It didn’t take long before the adrenalin rush had left them all nearly too exhausted to move, but somehow they did. Thor chuckled softly once Bruce had fallen asleep at the table, he’d effectively eaten himself tired and had passed out the instant he wasn’t shoving food in his mouth. “I’ll get him,” he tapped Clint’s should when the archer had reached to wake the tired doctor and lifted the extremely underweight man up to carry him out.
“He can sleep at the tower,” Tony had offered, waving a hand dismissingly when everyone blinked at him. “It couldn’t have all been damaged, I’m sure there are at least enough bedrooms for everyone.”
4) Bruce groaned when he first woke up, trying to say something that remarkable went from “ow” to growling quicker than it should have. Clint was there, throwing clothes and rambling. At least his lips were moving but all Bruce could hear was ringing. “You okay?” At least that’s what he thought his lips said.
“What,” Bruce winced at his aching throat as he pulled on the clothes and looked around before patting his throat.
“Hulk was a bit more vocal than usual. You hear me yet? A bomb went off pretty close to him before you changed back, I wasn’t sure if it would affect you or not,” okay Bruce had heard about half of that over the ringing before he winced and clutched his ears. Clint frowned and took something out of his pocket and held them out. Ear plugs? Clint nodded, Bruce must have said that out loud. But then Clint was signaling for him to follow before helping him up and leading him back to the team.
“Did he talk? Or just roaring?” Bruce whispered, not sure how much his throat could take. Clint smiled and held the back of his closed fist to his mouth before opening it. Roaring it was… “Feels like he got a workout,” Bruce’s muscles ached. Clint nodded and smirked before finding one of the SHIELD clean up teams and getting a few bottles of water before pushing one into Bruce’s hand. Bruce was blinking in confusion before Clint rolled his eyes and lifted his hand up to signal for him to drink up. “Oh, right,” Bruce mumbled as he tried to take the cap off. Okay, motor skills, not working. Bruce frowned and Clint looked to be laughing as he tugged the bottle away and spun the cap off to fly who knows where before handing it back. “Thanks.”
Clint smiled and pressed a hand to his chest before circling it then turning away, looking concerned. Someone must be talking to him. He frowned then looked at Bruce, looking unsure how to convey what he was wanted to say. “Go on, I’ll be alright,” Bruce automatically responded as he downed most of his water in hopes of easing his throat. Clint patted his shoulder and frowned, “I’ll yell if I need something.” He could tell Clint was laughing the moment his mouth opened before his shoulder was smacked a touch harder and Clint rushed off.
3) Tony walked into the lab, blinking at Bruce slumped over the table. “Bruce? Something wrong?” He blinked when he rounded it and realize the man wasn’t even sitting in a chair, just kind of half standing next to the table and nearly leaning his entire frame on it.
“Hm? Tony? No nothing’s wrong. Just… tired. Took a lot out of me earlier. The other guy can be a bit, odd.”
“Yeah, I heard about that. Does that always happen?”
“Wha,” Bruce blinked, waking back up again. “Oh, no, not always. I was just tired before and after it seems the other guy made it worse. I’ll be fine.”
“Bruce, you need sleep, you’re falling asleep on your feet for crying out loud. JARVIS get the cot. It isn’t the most comfortable thing but I’m sure it’s better than some of the places you’ve slept.”
“Tony, I’m fine,” Tony ended up supporting him when he stumbled half asleep as he was dragged away toward a wall that flipped down a cot. “Really.”
“Banner, shut up and go to sleep. JARVIS, pillow, blanket, lights?”
JARVIS was about to make a remark, Tony was sure of it but the AI just responded with a “Yes sir” and produced the requested items as well as turned the lighting down to a night setting.
“Tony, really,” Bruce was too tired to even resist Tony pushing him onto the cot and grabbing his foot to take off his shoes before tucking him in.
“Just go to sleep Bruce,” Tony smirked, Bruce was already out, snoring even. Damn the man had to be tired to do that.
2)Natasha had to shift some rubble off Bruce to help him out of the debris, “Bruce, you alright? Hulk brought the house down on top of you.”
Bruce just groaned and tried to wiggle out of the concrete. He whined and clutched at a trapped ankle like a wounded animal when he realized he wasn’t free. “Easy Bruce, I’ll get it,” Natasha knew that look, She’d probably made the same one back on the carrier, the first time she’d witnessed Hulk in person.
Bruce scrambled back once Natasha was able to free his ankle before clutching at the bruised limb while looking around scared. “It’s okay Bruce, we’re safe. It’s just us,” Natasha smiled gently and crouched down to offer to help him up. He looked like he wouldn’t take her offered hand at first but then he reached out with shaky fingers to set his palm in hers. “I’m going to help you up alright?” Bruce was still acting paranoid, not that she could blame the guy. Hulk had dropped an entire building on top of him in mid transformation; it had to have shaken a few memories if not screws loose. Bruce’s eyes told everything, lights were on, nobody was home. Well, except fear, the paranoia of a wounded animal but then don’t they all get that sometimes? Injured, in an unknown place, trapped, unsure if you’d ever escape… Bruce showed all the symptoms of shell shock, even Steve gave him a wide birth when Natasha had helped the scrawny man limp out of the rubble toward a medic. He understood, Thor had taken a few steps toward them to help and Natasha was suddenly pulled to the ground when the man she’d been holding up threw himself as far away from the approaching demi-god. It had hurt Thor’s feelings to no end, Steve had to pull him away and explain that ANYTHING bigger than him or stronger even just in appearance would set him off just then. He’d seen it, hell it’d happened to him before the serum. It’d fade, then Thor could help, just not right then.
“It’s okay Bruce,” Clint had approached carefully, slowly, even threw away his bow when Bruce’s eyes flashed green. “I’m just going to help Natasha and you to the medic,” the green went away the instant he realized the weapon was gone and winced when he tried to help Natasha up once he noticed he’d pulled her off her feet.
“I’m sorry,” it was the first thing he’s said since he’d changed back, making Natasha smile and softly pat his shoulder.
1) When Steve had tracked the giant foot prints into the trees, he wasn’t sure what to expect. He knew of at least two incidences from seeing them about Bruce’s odd reactions Post Hulk but he’d also heard of some really odd ones as well. “Bruce?” Steve called, skidding in mud when he started down an embankment.
Bruce just blinked at from his watching the reflection in the water to smile toward the voice, though he didn’t respond. “Bruce,” the voice was getting closer, it would find him eventually. “Bruce, there you are. We were worried sick. Tony said Hulk just took off after the fight…”
Bruce’s eyes seemed a little drugged when Steve got close enough to really look, “Did they hit you with something?” He got a shrug for it as Bruce just turned back toward the ripples to smile.
“He likes nature. It helps calm him down, keeps him docile. Sometimes it bleeds over really bad.” Steve chuckled a bit, at least Bruce wasn’t drugged, hopefully. “Can you help me up? I don’t think this bank is very stable anymore, I’m a little afraid to move,” Steve blinked at the odd indentation that yeah there was no way you were moving on that without it sinking into the water. Hulk must have plopped down there before the change, or possibly during it from the shrinking foot prints leading up to it.
“Yeah, sure, just… don’t get mad when we both end up in the drink,” Bruce chuckled and held out his arms for help.
“If you help pull me up onto the stable ground I don’t think either of us will end up in the water.”
“Alright,” Steve had to stretch and grab a nearby tree branch to be able to step out carefully onto the unstable dirt wincing when it shifted under him. “On three,” Bruce just leaned up to be able to jump for the grip if he had to, causing the ground to shift even more.
“One, two,” the dirt gave and Bruce yelped and grabbed the hand, getting yanked away from the edge before he could end up in the water.
“Three,” Bruce giggled, making Steve worry about him as it completely bypassed chuckle and went straight to stoned giggling. “You okay Cap? I didn’t mean to land on you.”
“Yeah, you need to eat more Banner, you’re way to light,” Bruce was still laughing when Steve ended up picking him up rather than just pushing him off him so he could get up. “You sure you’re alright?”
“Yeah, just… happy, ya know? Been a long time since I’ve been happy,” Bruce smiled and kicked his legs. “You can put me down now Cap.”
“Oh, sorry,” Bruce was laughing as he swayed on his feet once they were on the ground. Steve kept a hold on him as they headed back toward the group, just in case one of the several giggle fits ended up with him tripping over something.
Bruce was still laughing when they made it back to the rest of the team, Steve just shrugged while Bruce smiled and waved at everyone before going back to flicking Steve’s shield just to laugh at the different tones the reverberations made. Steve was starting to wonder how his nails hadn’t got bruised from how long he’d been doing that.
+ The time he didn’t
“Bruce,” Tony called, flicking up a piece of metal where he’d seen the giant shrink back to his smaller friend.
“Yeah!” Bruce bounced up out of the debris like some goddamn jack in the box, making Tony nearly fire off a repulsor thinking it was another of those damn doom bots.
“Jesus, give me a heart attack!”
“Sorry,” Bruce smiled and jumped around trying to avoid falling and make it out of the rubble without cutting his feet. “Wow, I’m wired, how long was the other guy out for?” Okay, Tony didn’t even speak that fast while he was rambling about the newest, well ANYTHING.
“About 15 minutes, maybe less.”
“Jeez, no wonder I’m wired!” Bruce rushed off the moment he realized Natasha was limping, wedging a shoulder under her arm and damn near carrying her to the medic posted nearby. “I never really got a chance to thank you last time,” Natasha had to smile, she couldn’t help it.
“Are you on speed or something?” Clint grumbled as he clutched his left side, Bruce was instantly taking the bow away that was handing from his useless left arm and rambling about him not putting weight on it until they found out if it was just bruising or broken ribs.
“What’s with our friend Banner? He seems well rested for turning into our green friend,” Thor asked Tony, too tired to really get his voice to carry all the way to the others. Bruce was now fussing at Steve and bandaging cuts with hands moving so fast they were wondering how he did that.
“I think, for the first time, he doesn’t have a Hulkover…”
“A what?” Thor asked before shuffling his way toward the medic, nearly leaning on Tony when exhaustion set in.
“It’s what I’m calling his weird moods after he de-Hulks, Hulkovers.”
Thor smiled before Bruce had caught sight of him, seemed it was his turn to be mothered… Half of what Bruce said had to be repeated twice when the doctor had rambled faster than even the All-speak could keep up with, bandaging wounds, offering water/ice/wrapping.
Bruce was the first one to into the living area of the tower while the others just slumped on the couch/chairs/floor and tried to relax and rest long enough to make it back to their own rooms. It took all of five minutes before Bruce was on his feet again bouncing, “So, who wants to go for a run?!”
“UUuuugh,” everyone groaned and Bruce ended up with at least three pillows thrown at him.