only way out is through

BIG BAD PUNISHER. 25+.

[dangrclose]

INDEPENDENT BLOG FOR MARVEL'S FRANK CASTLE / THE PUNISHER. private, 25+, usfw. please don't follow first!

affiliated with: @viduanata / @morefearless / @am4zon / @p9rrs ♡

[emptiness-statue]

[dangrclose]

frank had very much intentionally made himself scarce at wally's internment and skipped the reception entirely. instead, he'd ventured back to his apartment because work is an anchoring thing, and he's not quite bereft about the old man as he is rattled. it'll be gone tomorrow, because he can take anything. he can. despite that, he's grateful he hadn't seen diana.

when he arrives home, he barely has time to shower and get dressed before his doorbell is ringing. when he hits the intercom, he feels something electric in him when he hears diana's voice.

the moment he opens the door, @am4zon is embracing him. his arms wrap around her in return once his door swings shut, and he registers she's still dressed in mourning black.

"you alright?" he asks against her hair, lips ghosting by her neck from where his face is tucked into it as a big hand rubs over her back consolingly, instinctively. while frank isn't the sentimental sort, he's been to enough funerals and has lost enough for this shit to be muscle memory.

[dangrclose]

big fingers make quick work of the coarse coffee in the moka pot over the fire outside their tent. it's cheap coffee, but the smell of it is enticing as it wafts in the cold desert air. the fire is their only light besides the stars. soon enough, frank enters the tent with a thermos of it in hand, pouring himself a cup to sit beside @viduanata.

"you ought to sleep," frank says gruffly, "my turn to take watch."

[dangrclose]

arkham asylum is the belly of the beast, frank is convinced of it. it is a perdition he's sentenced himself to for the sake of the mission which has become drawn out in the most excruciating way. multiple instances have led to his solitary confinement, much to the amusement of the guards, but one of the begrudging lights of his sentence is @morefearless.

frank stands under one of the shower heads, allowing the lukewarm water to hit him. he is finally allowed some privacy, blessedly. however, at the sound of the heavy door opening, he glances at the entrance quickly, only to find dr. quinzel, dressed in the outfit she'd worn earlier. he is not abashed about his nudity, but can't help but feel entirely exposed, vulnerable. and he can't quite help but wonder if that is intentional. the water is turned off a moment later.

"ain't it a bit late for a last-minute session?" he asks, amused, over the sound of running water as he takes her in.