[A/N]: You madlads smashed the second goal, so here's the FIRST bonus chapters! Next goal is 600 Powerstones for two more bonus chapters. As always, vote, comment, share, and gift stones if you're enjoying the story!
After vanishing from the hospital corridor, Jay and Domino appeared on the rooftop. It was secluded, quieter, away from the chaos below. The city stretched out before them as Manhattan was rebuilding itself with cranes and construction. Life going on.
Jay stood at the edge, staring out. His hands gripped the concrete lip of the roof, replaying Peter's breakdown on loop. The kid's fists hitting his chest, desperation in his voice and questions that had no good answers.
Why does everyone always need a hero to save them?
Why do people get hurt again and again?
Domino watched him from a few feet back and gave him space. But after fifteen minutes of Jay not moving or speaking.
Finally, she'd had enough. "Jay, you need to stop dwelling on what Peter said. He's just hurting. He doesn't know any better."
Jay shook his head. "I don't mind his words, Dom. After all, I was the one who gave him the advice and the quarter. But his questions..." He pressed his hand to his heart. "They hit me here, and I can't stop thinking about them."
Domino knew where this was going. "Jay, you don't..."
"I know, Dom." Jay cut her off. His voice was quiet but intense in such a way that it made her nervous. "But even with these new powers of ours and Infinity Stones waiting for us, I don't know how to even begin taking the first step toward actually solving this problem."
Domino was silenced. She considered it, turned it over in her mind, the endless cycle of people needing saving. Heroes burning out trying to save everyone and the weight crushing them. "Fuck." She threw her hands up. "If only there was a lifeguard to save everyone like they have on beaches! This whole damn thing is so frustrating!"
Jay suddenly stilled, and his head snapped toward her, eyes wide as something clicked in his mind. "Dom, what did you just say?"
Domino looked confused. "What? Now you have a problem with me cursing too?"
"Not that! Before that. What you said about lifeguards."
"Oh, that?" Domino shrugged. "I wish we had lifeguards to save everyone like they have on beaches."
Jay's eyes lit up like a bulb had just clicked on over his head. His hands went to his mouth as he paced back and forth across the hospital rooftop, muttering to himself, his mind clearly racing.
Domino could feel Jay's brain firing on all cylinders, even from where she stood. "Jay. What is it? I know I babble stupid shit sometimes, but you don't have to be so embarrassed..."
Jay spun around, rushed to Domino, and picked her up in the air with a hug, twirling her. His face split into a massive grin.
"Honey, you're a fucking genius!"
He kissed her hard like she'd just solved world hunger.
Domino, surprised and breathless, managed to ask, "Huh?"
Before she could ask anything else, Jay said, "Let's get changed. We need to meet Master!"
With a snap of his fingers, both of them were back in semi-formal attire. Jay in a suit, Domino in a jacket and jeans. The transformation was casual yet instant.
Domino, still reeling from Jay's sudden energy shift, grabbed his arm. "Jay, at least let a girl in on whatever crazy plan you're cooking!"
Jay paused as the manic energy dimmed slightly, suddenly realizing he was being too impulsive and running ahead without explanation.
"Alright, Dom. Listen..."
He explained.
The rough plan and the audacity of what he was planning to accomplish. How Peter's breakdown had crystallized an idea that had been forming in his mind since the Battle of New York.
By the time he finished, Domino's mouth was gaping open. Just from the shock and stretch of imagination. The sheer balls of what her boyfriend wanted to accomplish.
"Jay, I really, really love you, but you are an absolute madman. All this just because Peter cried about it?" She paused, then grinned. "And before you give any explanation, my answer is yes. AND I LOVE YOU MORE FOR IT! This kind of crazy is right up my alley, sweetheart!"
Jay smiled, nodded. "Okay, then you handle Australia, and I'll go meet with Master."
Domino looked down at her new clothes in dismissal as scarlet strings emerged from her fingertips, wrapping around her body like living threads. The semi-formal jeans and jacket shimmered, dissolved, reformed. The transformation flowed like water, with fabric reshaping itself at the quantum level. When the strings faded, she stood in a beach getup. Hawaiian shirt with bright flowers, beach cap and shorts. Perfect for Australia's coast.
"I'll need to be ready if I'm headin' down under."
Jay smiled, leaned in, and kissed her goodbye. "Don't cause too much trouble."
"No promises, babe."
He teleported her to surfers' paradise, then vanished in a flash of blue light.
Kamar-Taj
Jay materialized in the meditation hall reserved for the Ancient One at Kamar-Taj. Instead of alarms blaring at unauthorized teleportation, it was just quiet and the smell of incense.
The Ancient One appeared behind him, nearly surprising him. Only his danger sense kept him from jumping.
"Welcome back, my dear student."
Jay turned and greeted her with a bow. "Master, it's good to see you getting used to Selene's powers! By the way, what's with the alarms not working?"
The Ancient One smiled, serene as always. "Wong grew tired of the constant alerts. Every time you ignored protocol and teleported directly into Kamar-Taj, the alarms would trigger. He'd have to reset them, adjust the wards and explain to nervous students that there were no intruders. The poor man finally surrendered and disabled them entirely."
Jay sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Oh. My bad, I guess." He paused, then brightened. "Master, did I tell you Selene's powers worked too well? You look so young now, people will mistake you for my older sister!"
The Ancient One sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, preparing for the upcoming headache. "You are laying it on too thick. What did you do now, Jay?"
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