No, you wouldn’t have heard of me

Selective Scott Lang RP blog. Mun and muse 21+. Multi verse/ship. Sideblog to: Araedi. Please read rules! Written by Mojito.

[minimizexaggrandize]

Two green-and-gold-wrapped gifts sit under Scott's tree. Inside one is a bottle labelled 'Bug Zapper', though it's filled instead with sugar water and probably more beneficial for the little gits than harmful. Inside the other is a runestone wrapped in a note: 'Shroud enchantment. Three uses when you need to stay out of sight, trace your thumb twice over the rune - L'

He of course takes great caution to be certain of the 'Bug Zapper's contents (after all, a mischief god could really go any way, right?) and finds himself delighted to discover it something he can share with his buddies later. Scott reads the runesone's note first with intrigue, then glee. Whilst his first thoughts turn to how useful it could prove to get out of a sticky situation in the field, the old thief in him delights in all the further possibilities of invisibility - all for good, just, causes, of course.

"Oh, I'm so gonna pay Baskin Robbins' HQ a visit."

[minimizexaggrandize]

// Doing my usual ranting to myself about nothing in particular and caught myself saying "it'd be like Scott just stealing Tony's Iron Man armour and taking it for a spin" and now I can't stop thinking about it

[benevolentgodloki]

It was entirely possible the man would cut and run rather than meet him. Lang could be summoning whatever Avengers were left as he stood idle. This was worth the risk. Besides, a Loki who didn't want to get caught wouldn't be caught, myths be damned.

Wouldn't stay caught anyway.

When the man showed up after all, Loki changed his glamour to one that hid his appearance from others but kept his face revealed to Scott.

"Not to pick up where I left off, for starters. I know everything you did against Kang. I can explain how but it will take time, time that I will give if you let me help in the coming war. I know you have no reason to trust me so tell me what I can do to fast track to earning yours. It gives me no small pleasure to admit that without your interference on the timeline, there wouldn't be a me at all."

[minimizexaggrandize]

Every mention of Kang added to the growing weight of anxiety in the pit of Scott’s stomach. He’d done well to compartmenatalise, if not entirely ignore, his feelings on what had transpired in the Quantum Realm and all the ramifications therein. Loki appearing now felt like some sick, twisted therapy intervention come to make him face the music. The uncertainty remained plain on his face as he digested the explanation, only murmuring a soft, if bemused “you’re welcome” at its conclusion.

Loki was trouble: everyone had always said as much, barring the occasional argument from Thor. He was a trickster, unpredictable and unreliable if not downright dangerous. He still remembered the footage from New York he’d seen from his cell at the time.

That being said, Scott knew first-hand what it was like to screw up time and again, to fight for a second chance from those he had let down. Hell, the fact Loki had come to him, even with his experiences in the Quantum Realm, must have meant the guy was pretty desperate for an ally.

“Look, just forget trust for now,” Scott sighed, trying to offset growing nerves by pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m willing to listen, so start explaining and please..” He almost looked pleading, “just go slow ‘cause I already have, like, six questions.”

[dontcallmeloki]

She didn't give him her name in return. Some silly part of her believed that it would be better to handle the grief if he knew as little about her as possible. Sylvie was aware that this reasoning didn't hold much sense, but when one's heart was aching as much as her own, well, people tended to do senseless things.

"No. I'm here to free his prisoners and get in his way," she answered, lips pulling a sneer that perfectly reflected her feelings on the self-proclaimed conqueror and all his variants. "If your daughter is here, she'll be in the next tower. You're the last one in these cells."

Cassie was here too... This only complicated matters further. Shame she was too deep in now to remove herself from the situation.

"Let's get you out and I'll help you find her."

Her fist glowed with green seidr before she slammed it into the control panel, making the wall keeping Scott captive crumble away.

[minimizexaggrandize]

Though he noted that she had refused to offer her name in return, Scott knew he couldn’t push. This was a place with laws unto itself and all manner of people as it was, and if someone was intent on helping him, he figured he could at least get to know them later. She was willing to help him and Cassie, and that was going to have to be enough for now.

Indeed, between her tone and expression the hatred she bore for Kang was evident: that alone was going to have to be the foundation of trust.

Though Scott didn’t flinch, the force of his rescuer’s magic-laced strike certainly caught his attention. “Right, yeah, I was just about to do that,” he murmured as he, somewhat hesitantly, stepped over the threshold, everything in his body alert in the initial seconds in case of alarms or sensors.

Nothing. Kang was likely too confident in the strength of his own cells. Good. “Thanks, I owe you for this,” he flashed the woman a genuine grin as relief and gratitude began firing up into something more proactive. Now he was loose, it was time to get his daughter the hell out of here. “You sure you wanna help? I’m grateful, but you don’t have to put yourself at risk. Either way, let’s get outta here.”

[benevolentgodloki]

This was a risky move, Loki knew, but it was for the sake of the multiverse. From what he had assessed of this man, who had not been entirely unimpressive either despite how ludicrous his abilities were, Lang appeared to be a man who could handle pressure and perhaps be a forgiving sort. He hadn't been part of the Avengers during the invasion either.

Mobius was off following his own leads and had agreed to check in with him in a few hours, all being well, so it was alone that Loki decided to join the queue for Ant-Man's book signing. While he waited, in disguise, Loki snorted softly at the item in his hands. Look Out For The Little Guy. He approved of the humble vanity in it.

When at last he arrived before the man himself, he forced a smile and opened the cover of his copy. There he had written a message for Scott to read.

I know about Kang.

Since it was entirely probable a random fan might leave such a note for a reaction, Loki subtly allowed the glamour to drop from his face just as Scott looked up again. He put a finger to his lips, not intending to cause a scene.

@minimizexaggrandize

[minimizexaggrandize]

It shouldn’t have been as easy as it was for him to bracket away recent experiences but, all told, Scott had always been good at bouncing back. It had helped him re-adjust to life after prison; to adjust to life as an Avenger; to adjust to the experiences of the Quantum Realm. Different names, outfits and locations had helped keep the lives disparate.

For the most part. It was easier said than done when family had become involved. Or when a horrifyingly familiar name was thrust under his nose.

Pen in hand, Scott sat stock still for a moment as he absorbed the message. His bones ached at the memory of every hit. His soul flared with rage at the memory of every threat to his loved ones. Everything happened in rapid succession: Scott looked up into the last face he had been expecting and uttered a noise somewhere between a yelp and a cough. He patted his own chest, reaching for the glass of water nearby. His mouth had gone dry. “’Scuse me.”

What the hell was going on? He’d tried to ignore all possible ramifications of what had happened: was this the consequence catching up with him? Still, if it was some sort of veiled threat, he wasn’t exactly doing anything. He signed the book, pasted on a smile and handed it back to Loki. “Five minutes, out back,” he murmured.

Mind reeling, thrown back to the Quantum Realm and all it had contained, a distracted Scott rushed his way through as many encounters as possible before putting a stop to the signing for early lunch. He finally appeared from the back of the bookstore a little later than promised after indulging a few fans in conversation. If anything, he’d been the one procrastinating.

There was little point in masking his trepidation. Keeping his back to the wall, Scott approached Loki and tried the smile again: what came out wasn’t as friendly. “What do you want?”

[minimizexaggrandize]

benevolentgodloki​:

She was a step away from sulking, but for now was not to be so easily deterred. Her arms extended across the back of Scott’s chair and she wriggled as if trying to get more comfortable.

“Of course I can, but that wouldn’t be any fun, now would it?”

Loki brought her darkly painted lips close to Scott’s, hovering in temptation. 

“Come now, we both know you human males function better when you’re not so pent up. Think of it as me helping you work.” 

Oh how he hated being so easily manipulated by her. No, correction: he hated how Loki knew how easily manipulated by her he was. It was inevitable, really, that he would be tempted and knowing how smug that would make the trickster…

It almost made him want to get up and go for a walk, but then she leaned in closer.

“Who said I’m pent up?” he shot back, any certainty in his words undermined when the pitch had risen an octave. “I mean-…Oh, damnit.” The space was closed between them and, raising his hands to gently cup her face, Scott indulged in a long kiss.

[dontcallmeloki]

/ starter for @minimizexaggrandize /

She'd heard that he was here, but she was too afraid to believe it. In fact, she had done all she could not to believe it, despite her feet carrying her all this way. And yet, here was undeniable proof.

Sylvie stood on the other side of Scott's cell, staring in with emotionless eyes but with a war in her heart. It was him, and yet he was a complete stranger at the same time. This was a Scott who had no idea who she was, who didn't know the smallest thing about her, while she knew him as if he were an extension of herself.

A hard swallow, tearing down the knot in her throat, allowed her to speak. All her grief and all her sorrow were sent to her stomach like a heavy stone, weighing her down and keeping her rooted to the spot.

"Looks like you're in a bit of trouble."

[minimizexaggrandize]

Scott had been paying scant attention to his jailers the few times they passed, engrossed as he was in trying to work a way out of this mess. Escape would prove difficult enough, and that formed only piece of the puzzle: he had to find everyone and handle Kang before they could even think of a way home.

Kang. He’d been such an idiot to think this something he could stay out of. Cassie had been right, not that he’d been able to tell her, their cells arranged out of earshot. Knowledge that the clock was ticking, fear for his daughter, lent focus to Scott’s work. They had to get shot of this madman, and fast.

Eyes riveted to the floor between his shoes, Scott hadn’t noticed nor acknowledged the woman on the other side of the cell until she spoke. He looked up at last, blank expression registering surprise to note that she seemed from somewhere else entirely. At once he sprang to his feet.

“Oh, well, par for the course,” he blustered, forcing a laugh as he moved as close as he dared to the opening. “Gotta say, though, on the list – and I’ve been in enough for it to be a list – this cell’s ranking pretty low. Can’t say I’ll be staying long.”

A note of urgency crept into his voice, then. Eyes darting from the pretty young woman (hey, sue him, he’s got eyes), Scott tried to get as good a view of the corridor as possible. “Listen, uh, before anything, can you – my daughter. Name’s Cassie – wearing stuff like me. Is she - is she still in here? Please, if you're gonna help anyone, get her clear first.” A pause. “I’m Scott, by the way. You, uh…you’re not with Kang, right?”

[dannytorrnce]

“Look, if you do this and it doesn’t work, you’re not coming back.” “Thanks for the pep talk, piss-ant.”

gif maker positivity meme → day four: friendship (make a surprise gifset for a friend)

SCOTT LANG + TONY STARK for @emotonystark

[minimizexaggrandize]

dontcallmeloki​:

His words gave her pause, holding what he called a bike high over her head with the very evident intention of throwing it at him.

Sylvie didn’t believe him, but she did believe that he meant no harm at this very moment. A smart human, but had yet to prove to be a good one. Fine. She’d halt her attack, but the second he got too close it would all end with her knife between his ribs.

An unimpressed expression sat on her features, much as she was grateful for temporary safety, and she released his precious bike. An arm curled around herself, fighting the ache and pain she felt.

“Get too close and there will be a fight.” Sylvie all but snarled at him, and quickly accompanied her threat with a pressing question. “Do you know or have any affiliation with the TVA?”

 Oh wow, it worked. Her hesitation was enough to confirm to Scott that he wasn’t in immediate danger, but he was in no rush to push his luck. The woman was clearly alarmed, on the defensive and surprisingly strong going by the ease with which she had wielded the bike even when injured.

Speaking of, he probably should do something to help with that. Trouble or no, there was gonna be little point either way if she wasn’t well enough down the line. Not that he was convinced she was going to accept his help.

The question was proof enough. Scott blinked. “TVA? What’s that, some company?” Raised hands dropped, hoping to appeal to her, though he didn’t drop his guard entirely. “Nah, I’m just a guy: no TVA here. Why?” He gestured – cautiously – to her side. “Speaking of why, why don’t you at least take a seat and catch your breath, huh? There’s only me in the house, so you’re okay.”

[minimizexaggrandize]

dontcallmeloki​:

No. No, she was not okay. Her entire torso was sore from feeling like it was being pulled apart from the inside and her leg felt like it was on fire and she was stuck in someone’s house completely at their mercy. No, Sylvie was the farthest thing from okay.

She could have used her words to express this, but Sylvie wasn’t one for words in situations where she was in danger. She was more animal than asgardian in such moments, and readily expressed this by growling at the man. Her hand shot out, grabbing on to the closest thing to her, and threw it in his direction, while her other hand searched for a more useful weapon.

With one look she had got from him, she had been able to determine that he was human, though with such haste about her to get away, she didn’t know what time period she was in. All she knew was that she was not going to let this idiotic human allow her to get captured.

She threw something else at him for good measure.

It would have been awesome to say this wasn’t the first time a stranger had been throwing things at him with considerable force. Scott flinched, as much in shock as pain as the first photo frame collided with his raised arm; shouted an exclamation which was cut off by the second.

Oh, boy.

“Heyheyhey – wait a second and talk to me!” As far as he could tell she was scared, and with her sudden arrival and potential confusion evoked memories of someone he had failed before: Ava. This time he was going to do things right. “Just – just put the bike down and let me speak. No, seriously: that thing cost me, like, so much money. Please.”

Hands raised placatingly, Scott looked to the stranger’s face and forced an awkward smile. He still felt so rusty at this kind of thing. “My name’s Scott, and you’re kinda in my house. Can we just talk? Please? For once? ‘Cause I really don’t wanna fight you.”

[minimizexaggrandize]

benevolentgodloki​:

With Scott addressing a source of frustration, Loki turned and calmly leant back against the counter, arms folded. “Perhaps we can help each other. I am technically more than capable of dealing with these people. The only reason I am avoiding direct conflict is to prevent an incident. My history with Earth is a colourful one and I would be keen to redress it.”

He held out a hand and conjured an illusion of what he actually had on his person — the Tesseract.

“They are seeking this. My assumption is that they can track its signature whenever I use it. I could simply disappear back to Asgard and leave them in the dust, but I see this as an opportunity. Surely an organisation like this is worth the attention of the Avengers?”

 Colourful was the understatement of the century, even by Scott’s standards. He had only been witness to snippets of the chaos on the janky old TV in his cell but even terrible pixelation couldn’t hide the destruction wrecked upon New York. Such casual address to the battle served as stark reminder of just who he was dealing with. Scott rubbed his face.

“Yeah, it just might be,” he admitted, and truthfully he was intrigued as well by now. No sooner had he begun to scratch the surface of shady corps and organisations, even back before his first arrest, it had become apparent just how deep the rabbit-hole went. That the same applied in a context this grand was of no surprise – but of some concern. Whatever their motives, it was probably worth knowing who they were dealing with.

“If you’re after the Avengers, though, you might wanna be a bit more specific on who you need.” He began rummaging for coffee pods (he’d treated himself to a machine since being stuck inside, sue him), keen on keeping his hands busy whilst he chattered. “I mean, I was only helping out for, like, thirty minutes. Forty tops. A few days if you include the van. Anyway, point is if you’re looking for Cap you aren’t gonna find him easy. I assume you know all about that, right?” A tilt of the head. “Or is that why you’re coming to me?”

[678i0u]

2019 mood

[dontcallmeloki]

          / @minimizexaggrandize​ / stuck /

Her arrival was made hastily. The tempad, horrible uncooperative thing that it was, had decided to be very helpful and malfunction just as she tried to walk through the orange gateway. Sylvie was immediately struck with pain, clutching her midriff as he entire being seemed to be under attack. She pushed through, destination altered and landing in a messy and noisy heap on the ground.

“Fucking…! Shit!” She cursed loudly, not thinking about the potential danger she was in. She crashed into something, causing even more noise that would alert any who were nearby.

The pain stopped as the tempad made a sizzling sound and the gateway closed, and Sylvie could finally breathe again. She could also hear her own thoughts again, and they immediately reminded her that she was in a new place. Alert in an instant, she looked around wildly. This was… someone’s home.

But where? And when?

[minimizexaggrandize]

The dull, rhythmic hiss of a soldering iron underscored whatever bright, poppy tune was playing on the radio as Scott worked on suit repairs. The house wasn’t exactly made for such work, and had it not been the suit itself needing some maintenance it would have been easier to just shrink down and make better use of the space. Typical luck, then, meant he’d ended up at the kitchen table with an assortment of tools and the remnants of the smoke alarm he had dismantled in the meantime. He’d put it back after work was done, but he’d had his fair share of awkward call-outs by now from the fire department and was beginning to run out of excuses.

Fsssst. Another careful application of solder, humming along now to the music he knew only by the station’s repetition, and the lights flickered. It wasn’t much, or for long, but just enough to drag his focus away from the delicate work. Huh. Weird.

He was fully  prepared to ignore it and proceed when the absolute racket which followed nearly made him jump out of his skin – particularly the string of curses.

Okay, so there was someone else in the house, and whoever they were they sounded mad. At the very least he was, as far as Scott could possibly be, more prepared for this sort of situation than he would have been prior to earning the suit: people popping up unexpectedly had kinda become a thing.

That didn’t make it much less alarming, though. With a frown, Scott set all equipment down and slid out of his chair to creep towards the hallway. There was still every chance this stranger could mean no harm (oh boy did he hope not, he wasn’t exactly in a fighting mood), but a little caution never hurt.

“Uuuh…hello?” He peered around the corner. Oh, yeah, she was absolutely part of whatever his life had become now. “You, uh...you okay?”

[minimizexaggrandize]

benevolentgodloki​:

Only a quirked eyebrow implied that Loki was judging his surroundings as he entered Scott’s abode. He was also doing it on purpose, for he had resided in much less lavish places during his service to Thanos and very little compared with the palace of Asgard. Loki was used to it by now. It looked like a home and that was pleasant enough, even if he wouldn’t say so. The god hadn’t a clue what ‘Scalextric’ was and only assumed it was some sort of game or gadget by its reference. It would work in Lang’s favour until the truth was revealed.

He wandered through to the kitchen as suggested and began idly opening cupboards. “I doubt we have long. If they were able to track me down and know that we are in alliance, they are sure to discover your address.”

Scott was, beneath his goofy exterior, an incredibly fast thinker: the problem was that he tended to run so many trains of thought at once, leaping from one concept to the next, that somewhere along the line they tended to derail altogether before words could leave his mouth. Such was the case now, as he picked his way through the clutter of his house and tried to simultaneously juggle processing the danger they were in; where they could escape to and how; just how much he really should be assisting Loki of all people; and why he’d thought it was a good idea to save up so many damn boxes up when deliveries came.

“Woah woah woah, okay, let’s just…” Nearly tripping on one of the aforementioned boxes, Scott deactivated his helmet and ran hands through his hair. “Let’s rewind a step and think about this. If they’re able to keep tracking you down, how, why and who the hell actually are they?” Ideas for where they could go were limited, but at least if they could work out how these guys could track Loki there might be scope for ideas. Heck, it might even be a simple case of rushing together some sort of jammer.

Then again, Loki and simple didn’t seem compatible.

The light thud of a cupboard door drew an exasperated look. Scott wasn’t the most composed of men under pressure. “…Can I help you?”

[minimizexaggrandize]

killmebutneverinsultme​:

What Jack was told started off reasonably well. He was quite happy focusing on being told that he was a legend that everyone knew. All in all, none of it was too worrying since he failed to grasp the idea that he wasn’t real. That was simply their mistake. He twisted back and forth as the machine was indicated, puzzling along with a journey of facial expressions.

“Yup,” he replied. “Magic box transported me here. Wherever here is.” 

The pirate holstered his pistol completely and began to wander out into the hallway of this strange house. He looked back to his new acquaintance, this wizard Hank’s apprentice.

“Your daughter isn’t here?”

Relief washed through Scott at once, shoulders sagging as Jack seemed to accept his meandering explanation readily enough. After all it made sense: the guy was just weird enough to roll with whatever life threw at him, this sort of misadventure would be well within his wheelhouse.

Distracted by the weighty existential issue of this fictional character being real flesh and blood (he was, right? He was gonna need to poke the poor man and reassure himself this wasn’t a hallucination. If he was, was this a one-off or were all fictional characters real? Did creativity create multiverses and build entire timelines? Did Hank know about any of this – what that even what the machine was for?), Scott only made a quiet hum of concern when Jack began to leave the room.

Sense at last kicked in and he snapped back to the present with a jolt. “Oh no, it’s just me here. She’s with her mom ‘till the weekend,” he replied and it was impossible to suppress the gentler smile that flitted across his countenance at the thought of Cassie. “We’ll get you back home long before then, though, don’t you worry.”

Having now set himself this ridiculous deadline, Scott decided that the first course of action, whilst the ruins of the machine cooled down and before he could get the metaphorical stuffing ripped out of him by Hank, was to make sure Jack didn’t get loose. The last thing he needed was to lose the man – or let anyone else get too close.

Scott hurried out of his room, clapping Jack on the shoulder in passing (ha! real!) as he gestured to the stairs. “Okay, so – why don’t we just find you somewhere to sit down a sec and we’ll try and work out what to do.” He said. “Maybe get you a drink and find out if we can make sense of this.”

[benevolentgodloki]

minimizexaggrandize​:

benevolentgodloki​:

Keep reading

[minimizexaggrandize]

Considering what he had already experienced first-hand (get it), the thought of far better from the trickster made his head spin. Loki prowled another step up; Scott retreated one. He supposed it was a good thing he wasn’t a man with a ton of pride on the line, because this was a losing battle.

Still...far better. Could be fun.

“Okay, well – good point, but magic’s still magic, man. What you’re asking me…would you be cool with it if it was reversed? You gotta at least tell me when you’re using something. Don’t want to say I don’t trust you or anything, buuut you’re asking a guy who’s run with the Avengers – and I know you’ve got some issues there – to let his guard down around you.”

[minimizexaggrandize]

benevolentgodloki​:

Had Loki expected them, he might have been ready with some clever counter. His first instinct was a telekinetic burst when he saw the swarm approach but he knew it was likely to kill them, something he did not want when they were so important to Lang.

But they’re only ants!

Scott’s allies.

Sh-

The magpie tumbled out of the air with a dismayed squawk. When it hit the driveway it stood up and began flicking the ants off with its wings in a very unbirdlike manner. When it had managed to scoot back from all of its attackers, there was a green-gold shimmer and the six foot god stood there, brushing at his arms.

“Thanks for that,” he huffed, as if he hadn’t been causing trouble himself.

Scott could have laughed. There was something to be said for watching a trickster god of old be taken down in one of the most ridiculous ways imaginable, and yet as bizarre a sight as it was he couldn’t deny a small swell of pride for his tiny, fearless little friends. Thanks, guys.

A tap and Ant-Man sized back up to default, thankful that the mask on his suit could disguise most of his smug grin. “You kinda started that one,” he replied. “Pretty cool though, huh?” Any misgivings about that swoop (or Loki in general) were somewhat soothed by knowing he still had a trick or two up his sleeve. It was enough to keep him comfortable inviting the man into his home, at least. He could hold his own – for a short while, at least.

“C’mon, we’d better get inside before they realise where we’ve got to.” He wondered if the man had been expecting anything more grand than a key in the lock and fairly average San Francisco home, but, hey, it wasn’t like he was Tony or anything. “Just, uh--…kitchen’s down past the hall. Might be a bit messy, I dunno, kinda lost track of the rota with Luis after we tried modding Scalextric.” Oh sure, cause that makes you sound real professional.