POI fic: Book Swap
TITLE: POI fic - Book Swap
AUTHOR: whomii2
RATING: PG
WORD COUNT: 1193
SUMMARY: Avengers AU. Finch=Hulk; Reese=Hawkeye. (follows The New Guy and Outing) http://whomii2.livejournal.com/20880.html
When Finch left Avengers Mansion Reese trailed discretely behind him. Finch’s smaller stature and quite, unassuming nature made him look like easy prey to street predators. Indeed, there had been an unfortunate incident last time Finch ventured out. A gang of young trouble makers had targeted Finch for some “fun”. The toughs would each have a long hospital stay to regret their choice of victim. Unfortunately, Finch’s alter ego had also decimated the subway car they were riding in and had created havoc on the evening commute. The pencil pushers in charge of SHIELD had not been happy. Fury had given a stern lecture on trying to avoid property damage at the next Avengers meeting. They had all nodded along, although Reese knew none of the team thought anything other than that the bullies had gotten what they deserved. Reese suspected even Fury was just going through the motions, as he was a man of action and much more aware of real-world practicalities than the bureaucrats who were nominally in charge. Sadly, Finch seemed to be taking the scolding too much to heart. He had been mortified following the incident, hiding away in his room and avoiding the others.
After 3 days of this behavior, Stark had barged into Finch’s room and dragged him off to the labs for a consultation on his latest project (Tony never met a “Keep Out” sign, either literal or figurative, that he wasn’t perfectly willing to ignore).
That weekend Stark flew to the West Coast for a charity gala. Loitering outside the kitchen area, John was pleased to see Finch contemplating the box of donuts he had put out after everyone else had finished breakfast. He had suspected that Finch would fall back on his previous behavior and not come to the kitchen until everyone else had gone. After selecting a donut, Finch set about brewing tea from the box John had placed in the cupboard. While he was waiting for it to brew, Steve entered and took advantage of Finch’s presence to take implement Reese’s advice and ask Finch to recommend some modern classics published in the past 70 years. As the two settled comfortably at the table, Reese went down the hall to head off Thor who he could hear rapidly approaching. The Thunder God’s boisterous good humor could be a bit grating at times. So Reese diverted him to the target range for some weapon’s practice (while Thor’s hammer throws were unquestionably powerful, some work on precision and accuracy would not be a bad thing.)
The following week, after the success of their most recent mission, it seemed that Finch had perked up enough that he was willing to venture outside the mansion once more. Not wanting to see anything happen to dampen Finch’s good mood, John thought it best to keep an eye on him and head off any potential troublemakers.
He wasn’t surprised when Finch’s errand took him to a nearby Barnes&Noble. While Finch had many old favorites squirreled away in his room, sometimes you just wanted a new book and eventually the lure was irresistible. As Finch whiled away the morning perusing the literature, John hid out and observed him from a nearby aisle. But he should have anticipated that someone who had successfully evaded a military manhunt for so long would be sensitive to observation. After filling his basket with his selections, Finch turned and marched smartly over to where John was lurking. John quickly grabbed a book off the shelf as cover, knowing Finch wasn’t at all fooled as he feigned surprise and made small talk. Finch subtly got his revenge by maneuvering John into blowing $60 on a text on stress fractures of titanium. Still it seemed worth it as they walked back to the mansion together, Finch animatedly going on about his new purchases while John smiled and sipped the coffee he had bought at the snack shop.
John thought that would be the end of it, until Finch asked him about his book the next day. Never one to back down from a challenge, John cursed Finch’s devious mean streak as he kept inquiring about the book, forcing John to read the boring thing.
Still, it was almost worth it a few days later. John had taken some sandwiches and drinks down to the lab where Stark and Finch were working (because neither genius could be counted on to have the common sense to eat or rest). When Finch slyly asked about the book, John smugly recited a full paragraph of the text he had glanced over the night before. Stark’s mouth dropped open and for the first time in Reese’s memory he was rendered temporarily speechless. Stark quickly recovered and, as the topic of metallurgy was dear to his heart, he took the conversational ball and ran with it. John and Harold exchanged amused looks as Stark became more animated in his exposition, completely oblivious to the fact that his audience was paying him no mind. John had been pleased to find that Finch and he shared a similar dry sense of humor. Most of their other teammates seemed unable to tell when they were joking if they said something with a straight face. Although Stark would be able to recognize sarcasm if he bothered to listen to what other people were saying.
Over time, the trip to the Barnes&Noble became a somewhat regular outing. At times Steve would even tag along, buying one of the novels Finch recommended or browsing through the art section. It almost came to an end when Reese’s current SHIELD mission blew up spectacularly in his face. He had identified the mole in their organization, but not before he was betrayed and he was swarmed by enemy agents. Injured in the subsequent fire fight, he radioed headquarters, hoping to at least pass on his information before his position was overrun. As it happened, Finch was present when Reese’s desperate call came in, and his voice could be heard in the background urging John to hold on. John grimly counted his few remaining arrows and looking at the size of the pool of blood formed thought that the situation wasn’t looking good. He had to revise that opinion when an un-jolly green giant thudded into place between John and the enemy. After a brief moment of intense carnage, John found himself being lifted by large but gentle hands and whisked away. It had all happened so fast that even Iron Man had arrived only in time for the mopping up (which in the case of the enemy standing too close to the Hulk’s arrival was literal).
John woke up later that evening in the medical wing, grumpily contemplating his future forced inactivity. But he brightened when Harold poked his head in a short while later. On assuring him that he wasn’t disturbing him, Harold entered the room and thrust a selection of books into John’s hands, all the while beaming proudly. Noting the cracked spines and well worn pages of the offerings, John was touched and vowed to take good care of the precious treasures Harold was entrusting to his keeping.
AUTHOR: whomii2
RATING: PG
WORD COUNT: 1193
SUMMARY: Avengers AU. Finch=Hulk; Reese=Hawkeye. (follows The New Guy and Outing) http://whomii2.livejournal.com/20880.html
When Finch left Avengers Mansion Reese trailed discretely behind him. Finch’s smaller stature and quite, unassuming nature made him look like easy prey to street predators. Indeed, there had been an unfortunate incident last time Finch ventured out. A gang of young trouble makers had targeted Finch for some “fun”. The toughs would each have a long hospital stay to regret their choice of victim. Unfortunately, Finch’s alter ego had also decimated the subway car they were riding in and had created havoc on the evening commute. The pencil pushers in charge of SHIELD had not been happy. Fury had given a stern lecture on trying to avoid property damage at the next Avengers meeting. They had all nodded along, although Reese knew none of the team thought anything other than that the bullies had gotten what they deserved. Reese suspected even Fury was just going through the motions, as he was a man of action and much more aware of real-world practicalities than the bureaucrats who were nominally in charge. Sadly, Finch seemed to be taking the scolding too much to heart. He had been mortified following the incident, hiding away in his room and avoiding the others.
After 3 days of this behavior, Stark had barged into Finch’s room and dragged him off to the labs for a consultation on his latest project (Tony never met a “Keep Out” sign, either literal or figurative, that he wasn’t perfectly willing to ignore).
That weekend Stark flew to the West Coast for a charity gala. Loitering outside the kitchen area, John was pleased to see Finch contemplating the box of donuts he had put out after everyone else had finished breakfast. He had suspected that Finch would fall back on his previous behavior and not come to the kitchen until everyone else had gone. After selecting a donut, Finch set about brewing tea from the box John had placed in the cupboard. While he was waiting for it to brew, Steve entered and took advantage of Finch’s presence to take implement Reese’s advice and ask Finch to recommend some modern classics published in the past 70 years. As the two settled comfortably at the table, Reese went down the hall to head off Thor who he could hear rapidly approaching. The Thunder God’s boisterous good humor could be a bit grating at times. So Reese diverted him to the target range for some weapon’s practice (while Thor’s hammer throws were unquestionably powerful, some work on precision and accuracy would not be a bad thing.)
The following week, after the success of their most recent mission, it seemed that Finch had perked up enough that he was willing to venture outside the mansion once more. Not wanting to see anything happen to dampen Finch’s good mood, John thought it best to keep an eye on him and head off any potential troublemakers.
He wasn’t surprised when Finch’s errand took him to a nearby Barnes&Noble. While Finch had many old favorites squirreled away in his room, sometimes you just wanted a new book and eventually the lure was irresistible. As Finch whiled away the morning perusing the literature, John hid out and observed him from a nearby aisle. But he should have anticipated that someone who had successfully evaded a military manhunt for so long would be sensitive to observation. After filling his basket with his selections, Finch turned and marched smartly over to where John was lurking. John quickly grabbed a book off the shelf as cover, knowing Finch wasn’t at all fooled as he feigned surprise and made small talk. Finch subtly got his revenge by maneuvering John into blowing $60 on a text on stress fractures of titanium. Still it seemed worth it as they walked back to the mansion together, Finch animatedly going on about his new purchases while John smiled and sipped the coffee he had bought at the snack shop.
John thought that would be the end of it, until Finch asked him about his book the next day. Never one to back down from a challenge, John cursed Finch’s devious mean streak as he kept inquiring about the book, forcing John to read the boring thing.
Still, it was almost worth it a few days later. John had taken some sandwiches and drinks down to the lab where Stark and Finch were working (because neither genius could be counted on to have the common sense to eat or rest). When Finch slyly asked about the book, John smugly recited a full paragraph of the text he had glanced over the night before. Stark’s mouth dropped open and for the first time in Reese’s memory he was rendered temporarily speechless. Stark quickly recovered and, as the topic of metallurgy was dear to his heart, he took the conversational ball and ran with it. John and Harold exchanged amused looks as Stark became more animated in his exposition, completely oblivious to the fact that his audience was paying him no mind. John had been pleased to find that Finch and he shared a similar dry sense of humor. Most of their other teammates seemed unable to tell when they were joking if they said something with a straight face. Although Stark would be able to recognize sarcasm if he bothered to listen to what other people were saying.
Over time, the trip to the Barnes&Noble became a somewhat regular outing. At times Steve would even tag along, buying one of the novels Finch recommended or browsing through the art section. It almost came to an end when Reese’s current SHIELD mission blew up spectacularly in his face. He had identified the mole in their organization, but not before he was betrayed and he was swarmed by enemy agents. Injured in the subsequent fire fight, he radioed headquarters, hoping to at least pass on his information before his position was overrun. As it happened, Finch was present when Reese’s desperate call came in, and his voice could be heard in the background urging John to hold on. John grimly counted his few remaining arrows and looking at the size of the pool of blood formed thought that the situation wasn’t looking good. He had to revise that opinion when an un-jolly green giant thudded into place between John and the enemy. After a brief moment of intense carnage, John found himself being lifted by large but gentle hands and whisked away. It had all happened so fast that even Iron Man had arrived only in time for the mopping up (which in the case of the enemy standing too close to the Hulk’s arrival was literal).
John woke up later that evening in the medical wing, grumpily contemplating his future forced inactivity. But he brightened when Harold poked his head in a short while later. On assuring him that he wasn’t disturbing him, Harold entered the room and thrust a selection of books into John’s hands, all the while beaming proudly. Noting the cracked spines and well worn pages of the offerings, John was touched and vowed to take good care of the precious treasures Harold was entrusting to his keeping.