I'm Not The Next Of Them I Am The First Of Me

[ya_rpg_npc]

((Tag: Everyone in the vicinity of the Avengers' Tower))

"It's settled then." Iron Man said. "Teddy will spend half a year with the Kree and half a year with the Skrulls. Then he'll declare his final allegiance. But until then, he'll make regular visits to earth. If he is harmed or threatened, or he misses even one of his scheduled visits, the

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[billykaplan]

Billy was aware of a hand coming to rest on his shoulder as he concentrated on not looking at Teddy. He looked up at Nico, who gave him a sympathetic look. "I... this sucks," she said.

"Yeah," Billy said. "But. It'll work. It has to work."

Please let this work. Please let this work.

[magnetlips]

Cassie looked down, her eyes started to fill with tears and she blinked. At first she didn't realize Kristoff had taken her hand because she was concentrating so much. Cassie squeezed Kristoff's hand. He was going to be so confused.

Xavin stared at the group, doing an admirable, if not complete job at concealing her anger at everything. She remained in her female human form.

[violet_arrows]

Clint looked annoyed. He wished there was someway he could help and then he paused, thinking about when one of the kids had ever called Steve 'captain'.

[burningpainting]

Karolina felt dizzy and suddenly realized that she'd been holding her breath. The atmosphere was so charged with tension she was surprised that anyone managed to inhale it. She gripped Xavin's arms tightly as the Kree representative stepped forward and gestured for Teddy to enter their ship (or one of them), which was already coming in for a landing on the roof

[teddyaltman]

The Kree and Skrull soldiers glared at each other, but neither was willing to make their race look bad in front of the boy. There would be time for fighting when the boy came to the obvious conclusion and made the correct choice.

Hulkling paused in the opening to the Skrull ship and looked back at the Young Avengers, and especially at Billy.

"I hope that someday you can understand my reasons." He said. "And that someday, you will forgive me."

The space ship doors sealed themselves behind the aliens and the Kree and the Skrulls left New York and the Avengers' Tower behind them. The Super-Skrull watched them until they'd disappeared into the distance.

Then he started laughing.

"I can't believe it. I can't believe it worked!"

Seconds later, Teddy Altman was pushing his hair back out of his eyes and grinning at the gathered super heroes.

"Thanks for playing along, guys." He said. "I couldn't have done it without you."

[billykaplan]

Billy pulled away from the very startled Nico and ran over to Teddy, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend’s neck. “If you ever scare me like that again,” he said, kicking the blonde’s shin.

“So who just went off with the alien guys?” Nico asked, wishing that Victor was up there at the moment. He would probably have a better idea of what the hell had just happened.

“The Super-Skrull,” Billy said, actually managing to not say the name like it was a swear word.

[teddyaltman]

Teddy wrapped his arms around Billy as tightly as he dared, burying his face in his boyfriend's hair. This close up, Billy would realize that Teddy was shaking, but Teddy didn't care.

"It worked." he whispered, swallowing around a lump in his throat. He took a deep breath, letting the smell of sweat and ozone and something that was purely Billy fill his nostrils.

This was right. This was where he belonged.

He untangled one hand from it's death-grip in Billy's cape and used it to tilt his boyfriend's face up.

"God, I love you." Teddy breathed and kissed him soundly.

[billykaplan]

Billy was so busy concentrating on the fact that Teddy hadn’t been taken away in one of those space ships that he didn’t notice the kiss coming until it was happening. He let out a startled noise and clutched Teddy’s shoulder.

Nico rolled her eyes skywards, glad that Molly wasn’t there to make any comments about snogging, and Captain America cleared his throat.

Loudly.

“Boys.”

[burningpainting]

Well, that was surprising. Karolina hadn't known that Skrulls could shapeshift so accurately. For some reason she'd always had the idea that they were limited somehow by physiology...perhaps because Xavin had only ever used three forms around her. Then again, that kind of skill might be something only a Super Skrull could achieve. Who knew? Whatever the case, she was unable to feel any joy or relief as she watched the ships' comet-trails fade from the sky.

"What happens if they figure it out?" She asked, speaking aloud to herself without bothering to keep her voice low. "When they figure it out."

She didn't doubt that they would. There was just too much room for things to go wrong. And she had the horrible idea that she already knew how the Skrulls, at least, would react. Another planet blown to cosmic dust.

What had Theodore Altman done?

[princeoftarnax]

"The Super Skrull is a talented shape shifter, they will not realize what has happened for some time." Xavin grinned. "But when they do they will be most unhappy." She could imagine too clearly the anger on all sides at not receiving the Emperor. They would be back, but Xavin would not let them take what they wanted.

[burningpainting]

"I hope you're right," Karolina said, somewhat doubtfully. Granted, neither the Skrull nor the Kree knew anything about the real Teddy Altman to know how he would act, and presumeably the Super Skrull did, but...it just left things too open ended for her to feel safe.

"On the upside," she said, cracking a tired grin, "Maybe the Skrulls won't be so upset when they realize they've had a spy in with the Kree."

Jesus Christ, she was starting to think like a politician! She'd have to examine this development later to figure out how she felt about it. Right now she was simply too numb.

"I wonder who's handling the cleanup..." she mused, looking around at the smoking chunks of ships and armor littering the rooftop.