Chapter Text
This was something that I had a couple ideas about and it was surprisingly easy to write 6,000 words+ about it. I didn't expect it to come easy, usually I have 1,000 words that sit for about a week before I have an idea about where to go from there. I am happy with this chapter, I hope you are too.
Rating: T for now… I guess. Will more than likely increase.
Marvel/Real world crossover - Darcy Lewis/Bts.
Soulmate Au.
Okay, let's do this.
The first time Kim Seokjin sees his soulmate, it's when he is ten years old and he's pretty sure he's dreaming. How else is he supposed to justify the reason why he is seeing a toddler with a head of dark hair curls and a pair of starlit green eyes, darting across a tile floor on all fours… that is so obviously not a part of the floor plan of his childhood home? That and she didn't look at all Korean… he briefly wondered what his parents will say.
She was painfully young, however cute, and he felt himself slipping into protectiveness by just staring at her. The child before him was on the smaller side and he couldn't remember his pictures portraying him as that tiny . Unknown to him at the time, he would worry less about what she would eat over the years as he would get glimpses in his dreams of her earning her curves with delicious foods that he would make note of. At the time however, he moved to sit next to her with a small smile as she grabbed at her plastic blocks. Instead of trying to stuff one in her mouth however, the sweet child used them to stand up on unsteady feet.
There was a gasp behind them that made him swiftly turn, all the while taking note that his arm passed through her as she startledly fell down on her butt, to look at the dark haired man that was watching her. Seokjin had a thought that the man before him was a little younger than his own parents.
"You almost got it kid." The words the older man spoke to her were gibberish to their audience as her father stepped forward, only to look up at the ceiling with an expectant tone. "Jarvis, you got that?"
Jarvis? What was a Jarvis?
To Kim Seokjin's surprise, the ceiling responded with a crisp British accent. Something that made the father give a crooked smile before saying something, picking her up and bringing her to the kitchen. The scene before him was muted as Seokjin watched her father feed her rice and bland foods that probably the internet told him was good for his daughter. However it was inbetween the moment that he witnessed his soulmate open up her mouth to scarf down the italian bread and throwing up the smashed peas with projectile vomit… that Seokjin knew he wanted to offer her the best, healthy foods that tasted good.
"Darcy!" the man responded as peas hit his rock band t-shirt full force, unintentionally giving the phantom watching his daughter's name.
She wasn't Korean so she wouldn't know the difference between the good Kimchi and the one that is at the restaurants. She wouldn't know that it's Chinese Kimchi and regarded as trash to the people of Korea. There were so many wonderful foods out there and as much as her father was trying, (the chicken drumstick on the plate was at least seasoned), it almost pained Seokjin to think about it.
And as Darcy's father gave her the leftover drumstick to hold and put into her mouth, Kim Seokjin plotted on ways to make such a dinner taste better. He eyed the turn about seasoning rack and realized that much of his favorite yangnyeom weren't on it. And as such, Seokjin wondered if there was any sea salt at all in the house because there sure wasn't any rice wine or Gochujang.
He blinked and directed his attention to Darcy, who had thrown down the drumstick from where she sat in her high chair when he was distracted and was now looking down at it thoughtfully. She ate more bread by little bits of it being hand fed by her father, until there was a plate of scrambled egg gently placed down on the table beside him.
"Tony." The blond woman growled at the man in exasperation - "What? I didn't burn it… this time. J helped." - and ushered the man to go change his shirt. The blond woman, clad in a dark long sleeve shirt and a fashionably styled gray skirt, took his place with a smile. "For a literal genius - Don't worry, I got this… we say no to peas, don't we?"
"And boys!" Tony's voice rang out before darting away, the language leaving Seokjin confused and looking for any hand gestures to come to conclusions.
The woman redirected the last part of her question to Darcy and fed her the eggs, which Darcy ate with a fiery passion until she was trying to reach for the bread. Child did love her carbs , Seokjin noted this with a smile and it went wider when her mother gently inched the peas away from the both of them.
Darcy, noticing this, made a sound of utter disgust and looked at her mother with mistrust. The only response she recieved was more bread in her mouth.
Cute , Seokjin watched on until he woke up in his bed with his covers pressed up against him. Maybe he should talk to Seok-joong first…
Seokjin nodded with the decision and went to get out of bed, now hopeful in the face of both learning about the language that his soulmate would grow up knowing and how to talk his mother into letting him help her cook more.
It's exactly the night of Min Yoongi's tenth birthday, May of 2003, that he closes his eyes and dreams of black curls and starlit eyes. He's sure she's very different than those in his class; skin is a shade of three paler than those he grew up with. Maybe German descent or Italian, he wasn't exactly willing to track her down and ask. She stood in a futuristic looking garage, handing tools of various kinds to where her father was underneath a car, before moving on to draw. He eyed her, she was smaller than him by far but she was… cute, to say the least. Indigo stained the white dress that cloaked her body, a strip of paint that had too much ambition to settle for the paper. A robot rolled forward towards her, its mechanical wheels squeaking before it made happy noises when it reached her.
She spoke to it, showing it her drawing and seemed to bore her orbs into the lenses looking back at her almost if … Almost if, she actually wanted its opinion on it. It made a boop noise in confusion - me too , Yoongi shook his head but stayed smartly silent to take in the childish, wholesome scene before him - before she rolled her eyes to respond verbally in irritation.
The music that flowed through the garage had a beat that was catchy; and as it hit Yoongi's ears he tried to break it apart, find what laid at the heart of it, what the artist was trying to tell the listener. The singer held a voice that was raw and powerful, sure, but it was the symphony behind him that called for Yoongi's attention. It was bass, and guitar, and drums. Loud, almost too much, but there was brilliancy in the chaos. There was life and dreams in the notes that the singer only could try to match up to.
Was this the kind of music they always listened to? The kind that they preferred? He knew a thing or two about music, his parents wanting him to learn the piano to show off to their friends.
So focused, he almost missed his soulmate's name, "Darcy, come over here." Darcy , Yoongi repeated and then out loud to test her name on his tongue. Different, not bad though. He watched as she dropped her paper that looked like a goat in a ballerina's tutu, and moved to where her father was. She slid underneath the car after he scooted over and patted the floor underneath them, he spoke to her a little in clear efforts to try to get her interested. It seemed to be working a little until oil leaked a little on them, specifically her neck, she squealed like the little girl she was the liquid hitting her skin and scrambled from underneath the sleek red car.
Her father followed, took one good look at her and laughed. The sound made her pout before she ran forward and seared some on him. This quickly turned into a mixture of tag and a… oil fight? Their laughter bounced off the walls around them, echoing in happiness as the robot Darcy was talking to rolled over her drawing, the piece of paper forgotten.
As for Yoongi, he decided that if he could remember Darcy's smile when he woke up, he would try to write a good beat or maybe a poem. …He heard from a friend that all girls liked poems.
Kim Namjoon was 8 when he first saw his soulmate, smart little thing she was, learning the language of her father that was all the while teaching Namjoon. They went through colors, shapes, numbers, letters and sounds; all the while Darcy was soaking it up like a sponge.
"She could still be a genius." The balding, almost heavy set looking guy said to her father, "Even if she is a female."
Darcy, however young she was, seemed to understand his words to a certain degree. The same words that had Namjoon, with his now broken English, infuriated. So what if she was female? So what if she was or wasn't a genius? …Why did it matter?
"Opie? Shut up." Her father, Tony Stark apparently, looked up at him with a fake smile. And it was with hardened eyes that made him cut off the 'You know how it is, Tony. All I am saying is-' with an, "Well, then don't say anything. We employ many women at SI, in leadership roles. She's two and is soaking this up like a sponge. She'll be just fine ."
And Namjoon had a feeling then that despite the language barrier, his parents and hers would get along great.
They went on with Tony teaching her more English, with the scene changing to them in a lab of technology and mayhem.
"Jarvis, put on something educational yet a little more than her age group."
The invisible man in the ceiling, the AI creation that made Namjoon want to know everything there was about Tony Stark, spoke with sarcasm. "So then no Cocomelon, sir?"
Tony scrunched up his nose in disgust. " No Jarvis, don't contaminate my lab with that shit. Put on some planting vegetables or something, maybe if I let her grow it, she'll eat it."
"Shit." Darcy said cheekily, making her father look at her with horror and a murmur of how her mother was gonna kill him. Of course she would choose the curse word out of everything he just said, "Shit."
"Yeah, kid. I know." He groaned in response, mentally cursing himself colorfully, there was no way that Emma Frost wasn't going to hear about this one way or another "Listen let's… let's not tell your mama, yeah?"
Namjoon felt a smile curl upon his lips as he eyed his later-to-be Father-in-law, watching silently as the man tried and failed to keep the young child quiet, resigning himself to the mayhem that would come sooner than he hoped.
Tony eventually put on a TV show that unknowingly helped Namjoon further with his English…
It was called F.R.I.E.N.D.S
Jung Hoseok wouldn't say, out loud, that he had been waiting for the dreams to start. The dreams that came when something happened, something so powerful, to your soul's mate that it called to yours. Really , he wouldn't because that would be something that made all the other kids tease him. At nine years old he wasn't supposed to be thinking much about it. That was supposed to come for when he was older, when he set his sights on who was chosen by fate for him to grow old with.
But when it did happen, anticipation set in. What kind of person were they? Sad blinking eyes greeted him first, they came into view after when he fell asleep, etched into slightly paler skin. She was outside, he could tell without looking away from the way her hair moved. Tiny thing, she was. God, he didn't expect her to be that small. Her form was decked in what would have been nice clothes if there wasn't dirt clutching at the fabrics, his mother would be mad if he had done such a thing as go outside in his nice clothes.
She poked at a wilting plant baby that she held in a tight grip, eyeing it with an emotion that turned into determination. She chucked it away in anger, the dirt akin to confetti as it scattered at the movement.
She turned away, walking with a huff before stopping abruptly. He watched amused as she scrambled to assemble her plant into the little plastic, pale green pot that was once its home. She walked towards the extravagant manor without looking up, seeming to apologize to it by the unintelligible ramble to the thing in her grasp. "Darcy." A woman with even paler skin and icy blond curls called to her and the child, his soul's mate, lifted up her head in excitement. "Lunch."
"Mama!" She cried in response; seeming to run as fast as those legs could carry her, without further care for the half dead plant in her grasp. She stopped right in front of the woman and Hoseok had to take pause here. Even though he didn't know the language, the comfortability suggested family. Darcy looked nearly nothing like her; supposed child's dark orbs met mother's blue, skin tone and skin tone varied. Darcy must look alot like her father, he thought in response and he watched his mate pout childishly. "Look!"
Here she held up the plant for her mother's judgment, trying to silently ask if there was something she would do that would fix… whatever that was wrong with it.
"You can ask Jarvis what is wrong with it when you go back to your daddy's, okay?" Her mother smiled at her after sinking down to her level before whispering, "I know even less than you about taking care of plants…"
Darcy grinned and snickered then, catching Hoseok's eye as she found funny of whatever her mother said. Hoseok watched as Emma Frost picked the little girl up and headed into the house. "We can water it and see if it'll perk up but only after lunch, okay kid?"
Darcy nodded in acceptance, she started to eat her sandwich then looked at her wilting plant with lingering dismay. Her daddy gave it to her before she went to her Mama's and - "Shit."
Emma Frost paused immediately, looking at her child with surprise before it swiftly turned into anger as she abruptly reached for the phone. She screeched out as soon as it connected, "Tony fucking Stark!" She paused a second later, spun her heel and pointed a threatening pointer finger at her daughter, "Do not repeat that, young lady."
Later, years later, when Hoseok would be able to understand the language he would wonder just what was said in this moment. Just what Tony Stark - the glaring, hardened yet sarcastic Father-in-law he would grow to know and care for - said in this exact moment that made his mate's mother turn that shade of red in the face with diamonds sparkling in her eyes. Years later, Tony would physically wince that one time that Hoseok would bring it up.
"I knew this moment would come… but from the sounds of it, you're just as bad as me. So… congratulations."
And then Tony Stark, the brave but annoying man that he was, disconnected the call.
Later years, Jimin would throw himself into dance to express himself and take his mind off of not seeing anything from his mate. He would get little feelings that he was sure weren't his own, but other than that… nothing. He sat on his bed, cross legged, as he thought about where his life was going at Busan highschool of Art. Mr. Lee was the best teacher, probably better than Jimin could ever ask for really. The man knew how to pull the most artful pieces to fit the dances he taught, knew how to connect with his students on a level that was both encouraging and forcing them to be ambitious within this path.
On his end table, the audition information that he got from Mr. Lee sat seemingly innocent. The idea made Jimin want to scoff; sure, he was good at dancing, the top student in the modern dance department in fact but…
Jimin groaned out loud in mental exhaustion and fell back on the bed, his head rolling sideways to lock his orbs on the paper. Mr. Lee's words kept on a constant loop in his mind, encouraging him once more to take the chance. "If I do it, will you stop annoying me?" He glared at the paper with an eye twitching, feeling silly for talking to an inanimate object before he closed his eyes and let sleep claim him.
There, shortly after it seemed, was a younger girl with dark hair pulled back into a tight bun and pink wrapped tightly at her ankles. She balanced the stability the platform provided with ease, and he wondered what type of shank and box the shoes had. He always wondered if the ballet shoes killed your feet after a couple hours but with the way that she was going, graceful but short even for him, she seemed to be doing just fine.
She smiled then, a pretty but cheeky thing that spelled out years of mischief, as the slow and soulful thing that was playing picked up a little. She moved faster; going on pointe for sheer enjoyment and swiftly tip-toeing, before curling her right leg behind her and out. Laughing she ran away from her friends in those near silent shoes - "You didn't break them in, Darc?" One of her friends yelled out at her back, only for her to yell that she didn't have the time to throw them against the wall yet so they better deal with the noise. - and when 'Darc' came back into view she came with…
Jimin blinked.
Jimin smirked.
And then, Jimin laughed so hard he fell onto the dance floor much less like a phantom and more of a puppet that was cut from its strings.
There, his mate stood, clopping her way in those noisy ballerina shoes… in one of those t-rex inflatable costumes that were primarily brown and black. The dark coloring around the yellowing eyes hilarious to look at and the head, not really supported by the neck even with the window there for her to see out of, moved with life as the opened mouth kept in an upwards direction. It's tail dragged as she turned gracefully on point a few times, her arms reaching past the costume's to move in nice fluid movements.
"Darcy Lewis." Her teacher started in an attempt to reprimand but the amusement etched on the older woman's face wasn't fooling anyone. Jimin dedicated the name to memory a few times just to be sure that when he woke up he didn't forget it, he noticed that she also signaled for one of her assistants to record.
He walked forward, checking her form as she did all of her ballet moves that the teacher wanted the entire class to do… in that t-rex costume. All of them, every last one; her plié, arabesque, pirouette, fouette, every last one. Yes, twirl for me, Jimin thought with a smirk directed at the tiny little dancer that hadn't even said a word to him and yet-
When her class was done, Darcy went to change and Jimin respectfully left her to it. She was still too young at the moment for him to be interested in her that way. When she came out, pulling hair from a sweaty beautifully angled face, Jimin eyed her with soft eyes.
Really, when she threw on a coat that was almost three sizes too big for her, Darcy looked even more adorable to him. There was something that called to him about her the more he stared, wanting to hold her with tender arms and shield her from anything that could taint her.
Walking out of the studio into the night air, she smiled at a rounded man in a tux that opened the door of a limousine for her. "Sup, Happy?" She got a smile back and it made Jimin quietly wonder just who Darcy Lewis was and when he awakened, Jimin was going to try like hell to find out.
Little did he know, Darcy Lewis wouldn't make the news until years later because she didn't share the name of her mother or father.
"This is ridiculous." A growl first sounded off in Kim Tae-hyung's dreamscape when he was eighteen years old, making him startle at the unknown language that the male voice possessed. Not that it mattered to him if his soulmate was male but why -
A young dark haired woman with a cloth bag in hand paused in the hallway at the tone as well, standing stock outside the door with breath that barely made any noise. Taehyung went to stand beside her, for it was obvious that this meant something. He moved his black curls out of his face, trying to not let the nervousness that hardened in his stomach show on his face.
"We meant for the weapons company that arms the United States and its militia… to be in the hands of a twirl girl ?" United States… America , Taehyung shivered with realization, that's where he currently was. "If that girl doesn't do something worth wild and scientific, so help me-"
"What do you suggest we do, Peterson?" A voice spoke up, demanding the attention of the entire room with its soft but business-like tone. "What are you willing to do?"
"Anything." The man responded in a determined voice back, firm in his opinion. "America's protection - and SI's legacy - shouldn't be left in the hands of a ballerina . It calls for war, blood, and the child doesn't have the stomach for neither."
"Agreed, so here's what we do-"
The young woman moved cautiously away from the door as the men talked with threats on their lips and bolted for the elevator that took her up to the floor in the first place, unknowingly dragging Taehyung's dreamscaped soul with her. Tears cascaded her face and she decided then and there, that even with her mother and father supporting her, she would quit ballet. Just like that. Her room was artsy, and showed character with it's lived in, mess coupled with artwork on the walls and photos pinned in places of her smiling as a child. She was so loved, he guessed from the insightful pictures of silly faces and smiles, but in this moment… where was everyone?
And as he stared at the flames that laid claim to her ballet shoes in her bathroom sink, Taehyung wished he understood exactly why she was so upset. Wasn't those Boch stamped shoes expensive? Wasn't it wasteful then, to burn it? Taehyung wanted to scoff out loud, it sounded ridiculous to burn something that seemed so precious to her despite whatever was said. Years later, when he watched her take take up the softest core science that her chosen college offered just to spite SI's board of directors, he would be very less confused but for now… it lingered a bit.
Soothing music played in the background, trying to lull her to sleep, yet all it did was make her cry harder. She stumbled out of the bathroom, away from the charred remains of her dream and moved to turned it off. Going as far as throwing the cd sideways and not caring where it went. She then attacked her cd collection; only keeping smooth jazz, piano and mixed beat ones.
She seemed to start on a path to force herself to like only certain things, so the raw anguish of leaving ballet behind would hurt less, and even when the language barrier stood between them… Taehyung's hurt for her hit right down to his soul.
When Jeon Jungkook finally got his dreamscape of her, it was later than Jimin was, and while he had been disappointed… he was just glad it hadn't first happened when he was sixty or something. It was when he was 16, passed out after talking with his Omma in the dorm of the now music group that just happened to feel good and… right, that it finally happened.
She was all dark curls and sass, red heels and a natural pout on her lips. She probably looked older than what she actually was, rightful depiction if the 13 on her shirt was right.
"Bruh, I am only 13!" He would later try to remember, the phrase plastered on her yellow shirt in big bold lettering that peeked from her big jacket, probably to protect the big cupped breasts that were shielded underneath. He smiled though, despite the surprise, because he was her Oppa. He. He couldn't quite really believe it, she was also smaller than him.
She paused outside what looked like a university library and forced the door open quickly, locating a small brown haired friend that waited in a corner with a book about Rainbow Bridge, waving a bag of McDonald's at her. "Hey, loser. Did you have Brekkie yet?"
Brekkie? Jungkook tilted his head in confusion, watching her after assessing her friend with a thought that maybe she was smaller than his soulmate. Which should have been impossible, but miracles have been known to happen. He watched his mate, noticing with a raised eyebrow that she had a taster baton stick thing hidden away. Not necessarily well hidden and that may have been on purpose, for if the shirt itself didn't deter others the thought of someone shocking you might. It looked like it packed a punch.
He watched as she tried to get the tanner girl's attention again, only to have to force the book down and yell her name, "Jane!" Immediately people shh'd her, making her sarcastically shh them back with attitude and Jungkook couldn't help the smirk that claimed his lips.
"What Darcy?" This Jane hissed as she looked up with tired brown eyes, only to take pause when a McDonald's bag waved in her face.
"Eat." Darcy, his mate's name was Darcy, hissed back in response. "You look like you didn't even sleep last night." Jane looked guilty at whatever she said, making Darcy sigh in annoyance, trying to help her friend remember the human care fundamentals. "I know your astro-genius and stuff but Jane? Eat ."
So this what she called 'Brekkie', Jungkook didn't even know if that was how you were supposed to spell it but… Breakfast. It was breakfast, he didn't even know there was slang for breakfast. Jungkook swore he was going to use that… somewhere. Jane pulled out an egg sandwich that he knew from experience wasn't the healthiest, and took a bite. "We shouldn't have breakfast in the library. The books-"
"Then put the book away and eat." Darcy said easily, a teasing tone in her voice that even Jungkook could detect.
Jane huffed but slid the book sideways, away from the food. They ate relatively in silence until the vibration of her phone drew Darcy's attention, and she answered it in a soft voice. "Hey mama." She gave Jane the 'one minute' finger gesture and moved to go back out into the hallway. When the door shut behind her she looked back inside to see someone talking to Jane about the food, making Darcy roll her eyes and smirk. "How are you doing?"
"Darcy." Her mother sounded through the phone, uncharacteristically too serious when talking to her daughter, making Darcy's face drop.
"What happened?" And as Jungkook took the moment to stand close to her, the phantom moved by its soul's reflection looking for comfort, he eyed her face with urgency. Something happened, a feeling warned him from within, something that would break her heart into a thousand little pieces. And he was right, his heart skipped a single beat as her mother sighed in anguish, for even though they weren't soulmate's… Emma Frost and Tony Stark were friends at the very least, happy co-parents at the most.
This was a blow that Darcy wouldn't see coming, and stalling wouldn't making it hurt any less.
"Afghanistan happened."
Darcy's breath caught and she whimpered a no that grew in volume, trying to will her mother to finally say that she grew an outstanding sense of humor but she knew it was for naught. Emma Frost didn't quite joke, and especially wouldn't about this.
Her scream cut through the library then. A dark skinned American soldier in uniform with an Air Force patch came running up to her to catch her as Darcy's knees gave out. She had questions as she stared at his familiar face, wondering when it happened exactly for her Uncle Rhodey to be not only stateside already but here, here. At Culver University. When did it happen? Where was-
Her bottom lip trembled and through stinging tears, Darcy willed herself to stay focused on the man in front of her. How his face held a wince, how he stared back directly at her. Jungkook winced the one the soldier was almost too composed for, feeling the hurt that claimed her heart claw at his.
"I'm so sorry, Darcy." She broke further in his arms, Jungkook going down with them as their knees hit hard on the tile floor beneath them. "We'll find him, we'll find him." The soldier promised once and immediately twice, the language was kinda lost on Jungkook and he swore after this he would throw himself into learning English even if it killed him.
Jungkook threw himself upright out of his bed, sweat claiming his brow and his heart was going a mile a minute. He swallowed hard, Darcy… Darcy, Darcy, Darcy. He threw the covers off of him, feeling them restraining in his current panic. He ran into the kitchen quickly, making all his other band mates - brothers - eye him in surprise.
"You're up?" Namjoon blinked in surprise, dropping his metal chopsticks down on his plate as his eyes darted to the clock, which only made his eyebrows raise higher. "Before nine a.m… on a day off?"
"Miracles do happen every once in a while, hyung." Jimin smirked at Jungkook and then it fell as Jungkook opened his mouth to speak.
Jungkook tried to quickly explain himself, tripping over his words as he tried to explain the dream that was quickly attempting to escape his mind. He remembered her destroyed face, he remembered the soldier, he forced himself to grab the details he could remember - all of them - and squeeze . He took a deep breath and released it, "Darcy!" Jungkook finally got out, paying no notice to how all the other members stiffened at the name, "Darcy: dark curls, pouty lips Darcy. Probably American, judging by the soldier with her."
"Soldier?" Taehyung's eyebrow shot up in further surprise and beside him, Namjoon took in the expressions of the people beside him. There was an abundance of surprise and confusion, slight underlining anger too. Had she somehow gotten into trouble that made-
"Yes. She was sad and seemed familiar with the soldier." Jungkook tried to explain through the confusion of his friend latching onto that word, falling short on words and he went further to explain the library. "Heartbroken, really. She seemed to get a call from… her mother?"
"And?" Yoongi leaned forward in his seat, stealing the word right out of Namjoon's mouth, looking serious and focused on what the younger boy was about to say. How bad was it? Yoongi wanted to ask outright, but couldn't bring the words to get around the sadness that clutched at his throat.
Jungkook's lips twisted and tried his hand at repeating the exact words that Darcy's mother had said over the phone, " Afghanistan happened." Namjoon, the one that was most knowledgeable of English since he was exposed to the fundamentals of it with his dreams, gave a single hard gulp and quickly reached for his phone.
After a minute or so of the members asking what the hell he just said, Namjoon finally found a news article that was clearly written by a publishing agency in the West and spoke over them. He forced himself to translate the article out loud until he couldn't bare anymore of it. It went more into detail about SI's weaponry than anything else, annoying more than one member. It seemed like the narrative was concern over the fragile protection and not of the man… the inventor, the father … that made them.
Tony Stark had been in Afghanistan doing a weapons demonstration when he was kidnapped.
There were solemn faces all around, even Hoseok was trying to keep it together and failing. They imagined just how Darcy currently felt, how alone she- it felt they they somehow failed her, not being there to ease the pain. It was a hit that each of them felt deep in their bones and they didn't quite know how to fix it to make it better.
"Okay…" Namjoon swallowed and forced himself to continue, "From everyone's reaction, I'm guessing Darcy is everyone's soulmate." It wasn't entirely uncommon, but there would be eight of them and- "What do all know of her?" They needed to try to piece together who she was, the mystery of their mate was an interesting one. And as everyone contributed, there were questions that still remained. Why did her father give her the name Lewis? After a quick search of Emma Frost, he thought knew why. There were too many expectations that came with both the Stark and Frost name, there wasn't enough room to grow and be whatever she wanted to be. She was thirteen at the moment. That's six years younger than him, three years younger than even Jungkook. And the way that Jungkook explained the taser and the shirt, he wondered just how much trouble she ended up getting from the males that came across her.
It sent worried thoughts to claim his mind, when Namjoon came back into the present to focus on those around him he saw more than one of them staring into space or had an angered expression as it too dawned on them.
It nearly broke Jimin’s heart to find out from Tae that she not only gave up her ballerina dreams, she had been after all quite good, but that she also burned the shoes. Going so far as to throw away any and all music that reminded her of the once hobby that she put her heart, part of her soul, into. Though how funny it was that she picked the softest core science to study and major in; if that wasn’t the biggest middle finger to the sciencing world that demanded more of the Stark in her to come out and play… he didn’t know what was. But now-
"How do we help her?" Hoseok questioned them, focusing on the subject at hand and willing someone to have the answer. It wasn't like they could just jump straight to America but how were they supposed to witness all of this, get close to her with those dreams, and not be able to do anything about the hurt that she was currently feeling?
He was met with silence as they all tried to figure out an answer. In the end, they all just vowed to keep an eye on the situation via world news articles and be good enough as a group that they would get to go to America.
They eventually achieved both.
So, whatchu think?
Chapter Text
Alright, I bid you welcome to chapter 2.
Graffiti clouded Darcy's vision and for the first time, she caught sight of who'd respond to her soul's cry. She didn't know it at the time, she didn't know that the bubble lettered, paint stained 'BTS' would prove to help release some of the pain in her heart. It was a set, she realized, as she eyed her surroundings.
A language was heavy upon the lips of each person that walked past her, one that was not of English, and Darcy didn't need a black dog by her side to know that she was currently a long way from home. Her vision then swam with cute, grunge Asians with 'hood' hardened exteriors that didn't match their smiles at all. One of them crashed a school bus on the set, with the rest of them just lounging about it as if the bump didn't bother them in the slightest.
That was when the one with the sunglasses introduced himself and the others for their audiences, Darcy was called to each one. Watching with starlit eyes that were unaffected by life's events, she had a feeling that they were going to make it big. The talent was there. The rhythm was there. The dances were there, despite the many factors that ended up with them taking multiple takes. Such as forgetting the steps, how it takes a lot of energy and body control, it takes a lot of stamina with each take, of how they aren't satisfied with each take (bunch of perfectionists that they seemed to be), if their body is stiff and they feel uncomfortable, the way that she could see their confidence drop, and the way they sweat too much with how the takes… making it look bad.
Just to put a name to a few. But she also saw them not giving up, she saw them all individually as people and the raw talent that they provided.
Namjoon, Rap monster is what he introduced himself as into the microphone, with his curling smile and dimples that are so prominent that it takes her breath away a little. Part of the rap line and officially the leader, clad in their grunge attire with those white sunglasses. His voice was as strong as his confidence and that hairstyle was intriguing to her: just how much gel did they put in there to make it stay up all block-like like that? Darcy wanted to poke it. She watched as he played basketball with one of the younger ones, Jungkook, with softness in her heart.
Jin, came after him off of the bus, introduced by Namjoon's voice. He was the one driving, she recognized, clad in a white shirt and with gold lettering that stood out. 'Bad attitude' was part of the lettering, and Darcy couldn't help but giggle a little at the contrasting soft smile on his lips. His hair an artful mess on his head. He was trying to be all badass for the camera takes but she could tell that there was a softness there, a need to take care of those that were his. Darcy was proven right when she watched his pass out food and water bottles to his members, when they took a much needed break.
Jimin, who was introduced next, did some weird gangster sign that turned her off a bit but he was a dancer. Darcy watched him smirk hotly at the nearby camera and gulped for air, watching as he moved like water through the takes. His abs were often on display and unknown to anyone but her at the time, Darcy's hormones decided to flare whenever she would see them. She watched as he did a buzzing sound before zooming side to side to get closer to the camera much like a bee. He kept going and looking at the takes, trying to see if he needed to work on anything with his eyes reflecting his smile.
Jhope, who had a beaming smile and piercing voice, and someone called him Hobi. His forehead was beautiful… for some reason, she couldn't stop staring at it. His black spiked hair was something magical, Darcy was sure, as it all leaned more towards his right than in equal measure. She caught sight of his smile, all sunshine reflecting in those pearly whites of a heart smile. It was almost too wonderful and Darcy wondered why the hell he wore that mask to conceal it. A perfectionist, in his own right. He moved as good as Jimin did, but with a look in his eye that was all dominance. Something that she would look back on in later years, finding the video after lost time, with a chill running down her back that had little to do with innocent reasoning.
V, who someone called Taehyung and first came into the camera angle swinging a freaking crowbar , was now caught dancing with the basketball. Lifting it up and down, secured in his hands as he bounced to the rhythm with a boxy grin on his lips. He was having fun, and it was a good look on him. He was young, older than herself though, and looked cute with the soft brown hair.
Suga, Yoongi … now that boy had some swag. She watched as he sat on top of the hood of the school bus raping faster than most WiFi's could probably keep up with. "I wanna big house, big cars, and big rings. But actually, I don't have any big dreams." Darcy caught him saying in English as she watched him sit up on a bicycle. She watched with a smile as he did a little wiggle all the way past a camera that was zoned on him. He has a gummy looking smile that he tried to keep mostly in the camera's viewpoint, but Darcy realized that was actually all for show. For whatever fans they had. Yoongi was actually quiet and kinda serious as her phantom watched him.
Jungkook, the youngest of the group but still looked older than herself, came in with a softness to him. Wide eyes, curious demeanor and soft looking hair. He did a rap that, even when she didn't understand much of the song as a whole, impressed her. She watched him, dancing and copying arm movements while looking at playback. He looked… honestly like a confused bunny, and his smile showed that.
"To all the youngsters without dreams." Namjoon smiled at the camera, grinned and released a laugh that made Darcy's tilt her head in curiosity. These boys were trying to be all badass for the camera and she was sure it came off that way in the music video that Jarvis could probably hunt down for her if they were real and not just a fragment of her imagination… But they were cute. Grunge-looking but cute and… talented.
"Hey hyung-"
Good dream? He noticed the barely there sparkle in her eyes almost immediately as she was woken up by Jarvis once again and Jungkook was offhandedly sure that his sleeping pattern would be even more fucked up if he ever got the chance to visit the West. Jarvis's British accented voice, once both charming and sarcastic, was now gentle with how he spoke to Darcy. As if he too was scared that if someone spoke to her with anything higher she would shatter in such a way that she couldn't be put back together.
"Hello, Miss Darcy." The AI started, and Jungkook was pleased that he understood more English than he had a month ago; as the computerized being illuminated the shades that were on the windows. It was then that he saw her orbs, those beautiful and once so expressive eyes, were without shine now. It had been full month since Tony Stark had been kidnapped in the middle east, he refused to think that his soulmate's father was killed. To everyone that cared, it felt like years had passed. Years of watching their soulmate spiral and not being able to do anything about it. Watching as she stress baked only to give it all to a homeless shelter, as she drank down some of the expensive alcohol that Tony had harbored, cleaning everything she could get her hands on aggressively in an effort to keep her mind off of it, sleeping because it was easier than being awake…
It wasn't healthy and after watching her only once drink to escape… at thirteen years old… made sadness grow in Jungkook's heart. She was so young and he had a feeling that when she grew up, she was going to have a complicated relationship with alcohol even though he hoped it was not so. She may not have touched it since that incident but that didn't mean that she hadn't thought about it or what her father would say if he were here… which only made her sadness grow.
He wonders if in this long moment of grief if she too was dreaming of them; and if so, did she find comfort in them? He wonders if she even understood what they were saying, if she grew to love his Eomma and Appa as he hoped she one day did. As all of them hoped.
"It's seven-fifteen AM." Jarvis continued after a minute, ignoring the way that Darcy groaned in exasperation. A sound that Jungkook echoed, that was too early for him. "The weather in Malibu is eighty-five degrees with scattered clouds. The surf conditions are fair with a fifty-two percent chance of high tide."
"J." She dragged out the letter in a tone of full annoyance, "Let me go back to dreaming of cute and talented grunge-looking Asians, okay? Seriously, think of the cute Asians ."
Huh, well that answered that question. Disregarding the ‘grunge looking’ part… kinda. Jungkook didn't think she particularly cared for their style just by her tone. Maybe they should switch it up a little bit? She thought they were cute and talented though… when their own country didn't really believe in them. Really, they came from a very small company that almost went bankrupt and even getting a chance to debut was a fluke. Most told them that they wouldn't make it, didn't take them seriously and looked down on them.
There were comments that he recently caught online even when the other members tried to hide it; about how they should have been named bulletproof helmets and should have been given bulletproof vests , too. That their name sounded like a "J-pop group from the eighties". That if they wanted to survive they needed to change their band name and their individual names too. …That they would be forgotten and that they should just enlist in the army.
They knew the time would come where they would have to enlist, it was the way of their country if they wanted to remain a citizen. In the meantime however, they spitefully decided that that would be the name of their fan base: Army. That would be the ones that truly stayed and respected them; whom they aimed to reach out and touch broken hearts, only to give them back whole and in purple. Purple; Darcy’s favorite color.
To think that Darcy was already one of theirs, already an Army; that thought them to be talented enough, wonderful enough, worthy enough -
"I formally apologize to such 'cute' Asians in your dreams, young miss… but I must insist." Jarvis's near sarcastic, almost contempted voice interrupted his thoughts; making Jungkook bounce back to focus on his dream. He was trying to commit everything to memory to share with the others; knowing that he probably was the one that slept the most, aside from Yoongi, to keep an eye on her and try to balance his health with this chosen lifestyle.
"Why?" Darcy tried to glare at the ceiling but the tears in her eyes failed to deliver it. "It's already been a month, Jarvis. A full month ."
"Young miss-"
Darcy wasted no time in demanding him to put himself in silent mode, sounding like an annoyed mother or something. Jungkook was too young to be anything more than amused, though he was sure that when he got older he would think back to this moment with more emotion. With more maturity. Instead he eyed the bags underneath her eyes with concern as she groaned once more before falling backwards on the bed. There was a moment of silence before she sighed in exasperation, almost as if the disapproving silence was making her do Jarvis’s will and getting up like he had bid her to.
He watched the haunted look cast upon her face as she pulled herself up from the bed that previously welcomed her, showing off a long band t-shirt that reached mid thigh. The motor oil stain claimed it had been - is - her father’s.
There was a grumble underneath her breath then, one that he almost didn’t catch but that was okay because someone else did, “There had better be coffee.”
“There is.” A feminine voice responded, clearly with a soft accent that Jungkook couldn’t pinpoint. Darcy turned her head sharply to eyeball the woman clad in a white tank top, some faded denim jeans and heels at her feet. Blond hair smoothed down her shoulders in loose curls, skin a shade or so paler than Darcy’s own. The woman eyed the younger with pity, “Baby-”
And Jungkook caught Darcy’s response before he was pulled back to the land of the living, “... Mama .”
"Jungkook." Said boy woke up to Hobi gently shaking him into awareness, and it took him a moment to see that he was still on set. Jungkook sat upon one of the director's chairs and apparently… slept… there. "Time to go."
"Hoba-hyung." The younger boy started as he mentally grabbed onto the details tightly. "She saw us… she… she likes it. Us ."
Hobi's mouth, understandably, pops open in surprise. He seemed to be at a loss for words.
"She doesn't exactly like the- the grunge style but…" Jungkook gulps for air, "Darcy thinks we're cute… and talented."
Hobi , who had taken to wearing masks after doing promo shoots for this music video because people called him ugly, is more than a little surprised and warmed by those words. It's Hoseok, however - a perfectionist through and through - that yanks him out of the chair and drags him to the others after processing his words, though.
Because if his baby soulmate thought he - they - were cute then he would probably do away with the face masks. He never did like them anyway, as they made it hard to breathe properly after doing a hard dance routine. If he was cute enough for her, the haters could get over themselves.
And talented ? Hobi mentally lingered on the word, watching as the others reacted to what she said in the dream, maybe… just maybe… they could make it big.
Well, there goes the thought of leaving the group and tracking her down in America. Wait for us, Darcy. Please just wait for us.
"Well, Tony Stark is dead." A girl that sounded slightly older than Darcy responded to her friend in the hallway, her callus words loud and made without thought. "It's already been a month and a half. My father said that they probably won't even find his body and the government is just worried about our defense now that he's gone."
Jin narrowed his orbs at the young woman for all the words he actually could understand, tuning her completely out to look at Darcy who was as stiff as a statue at those words. He eyed her, reaching a hand in an attempt to lay it up on her only for it to go through Darcy's shoulder. Worth a try , Jin sighed before putting his hand down to eye her worriedly. Darcy had her fists clenched at her sides, thumb out and tight like she wanted to hit something - someone - and it was only then that Jin noticed something else.
Around her hands, moving and very much alive, was matter that looked like a thousand galaxies. He watched cautiously as she freaked out about following into her mother's footsteps with the genes, something that he and the boys thought a possibility since finding out who her mother was, before Darcy took a deep breath to try and relax.
"The last thing I need is to be labeled a freak." Jin tilted his head in confusion at the murmured words, not understanding the last word but knowing it wasn't good by the way she said it. He may have to ask Namjoon. Tied to her emotions it seemed, the cosmic matter slowly dissolved - “Nobody wants their soulmate to be a freak.” - only to reappear when her ears caught the other girl's voice yet again. Darcy stood up straighter, ignoring the power cradled within her hands, and before Jin could think of a way to try to convey any emotion to her - Darcy was in front of the girl with her right fist hitting the other child's face. Tears streamed out of pained blue eyes but Darcy ignored it in favor of walking away and out of the school.
"Guess I'm gonna have to switch schools… again." Her tone was saddened; as if she really lost hope to be good enough for anyone, especially her soulmates.
"Got that covered." A paler man with dark curly hair and an ex-boxer looking build that Jin himself appreciated, stood casually next to a black car in a tuxedo. One of his eyebrows raised at her fists, "I was already on my way but your mother called. Xavier's has a place for you… you think you can calm that down until we get there?"
Xavier's?
Jin watched as the man nodded to Darcy's hands, watched as she nodded and took deep breaths, watched as it receded once more.
"Good." He opened up the door with a smile, an invite as well as a reassurance.
She walked forward and before she got in, Darcy looked at him with eyes that were tore between grateful and afraid. "Thanks, Happy."
Happy shut the door, gently as to not scare her, before looking at his own reflection in the glass. His own, "You're welcome, kid." was carried softly on the wind.
Caught within the memories as soon as she opened the door to what had been her home, Hoseok could tell from the tears stinging her eyes that Darcy didn't want to be here. The environment that was once lively was now as quiet as a graveyard; which was sadly ironic given what the world claimed of her father. The only thing that actually made any sound was her feet as her shoes pulled her forward, mumbling that she wasn't going to be staying long anyway. From what Jin said, she was going to some special school for gifted people; enhanced like her mother before her, but Darcy didn't seem happy. It looked like when her father left for that demolition demonstration, he took a piece of her with him.
It made Hoseok feel a certain way that was more contradictory if anything; sad and powerless to actually make her situation better… but also hopeful that her father was still alive. He had to be, for Darcy's sake and sanity.
Darcy stopped in her tracks, not even making it to her door to get a bag packed before she sees the glinting metal railing of stairs that goes down to a familiar room. One that she has been avoiding since she got the news, yet the light that cascaded over it beckoned her forward. She, unlike so many times before, couldn't ignore it and wrapped her arms around herself as she moved forward.
Hoseok could tell she was shaking a little as she moved forward but she didn't stop, the glass door sliding on its own as soon as she stepped to it. There was a rush of wheel sounds then, as the robots that Yoongi and Namjoon once mentioned hastily came to greet her. She laughed in response, the sad sound that was rough from a full month of unuse but it also sounded like she meant it. She missed the bots, he could tell but she also hated that they reminded her of -
He couldn't fault her for it.
The sudden sound of tools hit his ears then, a blow torch followed, making him turn to face the hologram that Jarvis sneakily displayed for them. “Wow,” Tony uttered as he took a bite of a blueberry muffin, “Which bakery did we get these from?”
Darcy stared at her father with tears that snaked down her face, making Hoseok want to grab and comfort her. God, he felt useless. They could only bare witness to Jarvis telling Tony that Darcy had made them for her father because of his love for blueberries, a foreshadowing as to why Darcy won't make them since he was kidnapped - they would later find out.
“God, that kid is gifted.” Tony had moaned as he stuffed more of the muffin in his mouth. “J, let me know when it's time to get ready for her recital, okay? …I can't miss this one.”
“Of course, sir.”
Darcy scrambled backwards, away from the captured illusion that was frozen in time of her father. Her eyes never leaving his form as she turned to run away from the lab.
Her body set to collide with Hoseok, who reached his arms out to instinctively catch her, and it made him feel even more empty as she ran through him with tears upon her face. She took a full piece of his soul with her, he was almost sure of it.
Yoongi, imaginary cute Asian or not, was hurt. Darcy, who was sleeping in the car heading for Xavier's home for imaginary friends, was sure of it. She almost felt the phantom pain in her shoulder, pain that was not her own, yet for some reason he kept moving it. She felt like screaming at him to get it checked, but still she was silent as she caught his barely there wince as he did a dance that required him to roll it. Nobody would hear her anyway. That still didn't stop her from wanting to smack him for not taking care of himself, didn't stop her from wanting to hit every single last one of them for not noticing, for going on freaking special diets when they all looked healthy. The label wanted them to be smaller, less bulky with muscles, and to lose the pounds needed to actually look healthy.
The world of Kpop's finest guidelines, I tell ya. Darcy vocally scoffed in annoyance, knowing that with her curving body they would all hate her. Darcy also found she was okay with that. She would rather them be healthy than starving, happy rather than passing out, alive rather than-
Darcy gulped, then she swatted at Yoongi much like a cat in an effort to Gibbs Slap him. She followed him to his recording studio to play around with some beats, he zoned into his work and she followed him. Then after what seemed like an eternity, he paused everything. No sound came from the room at all; he stared into space, retreating into his mind where she could not follow.
And then, in his native tongue that Darcy had tried and failed to understand, this man started to sing a lullaby.
It was beautiful, foreign to her ears and raw with all of its emotion. It, however, still didn't change the fact that she wanted to smack him.
"Darcy? Darcy?" A voice that was not Korean accented called her name, forcing her to open her eyes and face reality. A reality where her father was gone, her soulmates were surely in their own country halfway across the globe, she acquired new freaking powers that she didn't ask for and she was going to be living at a school . "We're here."
And through it all, Happy was there. Looking at her with the steadiness that she needed right now. Mind as well roll with it, it's not like any of it was about to change. This was her new reality, after all.
"Thanks." She stepped out of the vehicle after promising to keep him in the loop, nervousness pulled in her stomach as she eyed the manor-like structure before her. This was to be her new home, how -
The mental insult came to a screeching pause when she noticed a woman of darker skin and white hair came down from the sky to greet her with a soft smile and glowing white eyes. One that seemed to calm at least half of her nerves. How intriguing.
"Ms. Lewis, my name is Ororo Munroe." The older woman introduced with a soft accent at her tongue, "Welcome to Xavier's school for Gifted Youngsters." Youngsters? Who’s old as fuck grandpa made up that name? Darcy couldn't help but think in her amusement.
Darcy nodded in response, trying to say that it was nice to meet her but if she were honest, she wasn't too sure if it was. Given these circumstances and the strange surging power within her body, did she really have time for pleasantries? Was there really time when she felt like a time bomb just wanting to be poked the wrong way?
Darcy sighed and followed the woman, somehow hopeful but resigned to her situation, at least I have my iPod.
She turned to hug Happy’s tall frame, the man before her returning it with arms cradled around her back. And in that moment, with Happy being such a steady presence for her, Darcy sought not to cry over the things that she couldn't change.
Happy, who held her tighter as her body lightly shook with emotion, mentally cursed. He still remembered the little girl that wanted to be a ballerina by day and a crime fighting chemist by night. He still remembered the child that dreamed big things. It wasn't fair that just after losing her father, life gave her another thing to adjust to. It wasn't fair at all, and yet… life never was.
He released a sigh that was barely audible, “I'll miss you too, kid… I'll miss you too.”
"Welcome, Ms. Lewis." A bald man with a very good facial structure for whatever age he was greeted Darcy, looking almost regal in the suit jacket, dress pants, white shirt and tie that he wore. His voice was kind and gentle with a touch of humor to it. "I am Professor Xavier, the headmaster, and the old grandpa that named the school." He smirked at her, whilst her face was aflamed with embarrassment.
Relax, young Darcy. It's fine. The man's voice echoed in the dream, yet Namjoon was so sure that his lips didn't move. Darcy opened her mouth in surprise, really it probably shouldn't have given who her mother was but-
"I see you have already met Ororo Munroe, also called Storm, who teaches multicultural studies." The white haired woman nodded softly at the introduction before the headmaster continued on with the introductions of her other soon to be teachers, however Darcy tuned it out for she was still stuck on that fact that they had freaking codenames.
What a ridiculous concept. The American government hated mutants, finding enhanced individuals entirely too untrustworthy to be viewed as human. Darcy didn't hate them; however her patience for others, especially the United States government, greatly diminished when they didn't dare even look for her father. Rodney going so far as to look for him himself with the help of Jarvis, she suspected. It saddened her, wanting to be hopeful but also not being able to handle the prospect of being let down again.
…What was the point of a codename when there was an option to live a peaceful life, anonymously? When there are a large group of people that hated and feared mutants for what they couldn't control? How stupid of them, really, on both sides. Nobody was free unless everybody was free; and that's exactly what the damn system wanted.
“You have much hate in your heart, Young Darcy.” The headmaster uttered gently, and it was only then that the young girl realized how quiet it was. “I understand.” The teen waited a moment for a ‘but’ to come, Namjoon could tell, and yet she received none. “Here, you will learn how to control your gifts… and your emotions that fuel them. Logan.” A blurry looking man that was built of muscle and steel stepped forward with a scowl that somehow softened every time he looked at her. “Bring Ms. Lewis to the training room, please. We will discuss classes and settle her into her room later, I feel it best to give her the option of hitting something now.”
Logan's face settled into intrigue, and with one raised eyebrow he turned silently to walk out of the room. “Alright but I'm not a damn therapist, Chuck. …You coming or not, kid?”
I hope you enjoyed this chapter.