She awoke to Okoye barking her usual brutal commands, only just a couple of hours after she'd managed to crawl into bed, sneaking in with the morning light.
Grumpily trying to blink the sleep from her eyes, she made her way down to the training room where they spent most of their time- due to the reinforced vibranium walls that didn't melt if she had an outburst (which she now often did) .
"Come on, wake up Scott and show me what you can do." That mantra remained the same.
She growled internally, on no sleep and no coffee, she could barely function and Okoye was not inflicting a good mood upon her.
"Did you think anymore on my suggestion?" She asked her quiet student, causing Talia's mind to cast back to her teachers advice on a peaceful state, of mind, of being from the day before.
"I can't even remember being at peace." She admitted softly, and something twitched on her teachers face, before it quickly vanished, but the harshness seemed to disappear slightly from her voice when she next spoke, "Not even once, not even close?"
Flashes of firelight, icy blue eyes and the purple dawn raced through her mind without permission and she whispered, "Maybe, but I'm not sure."
She took a steady breath, adopting the stance Okoye had taught her, arms raised.
Her heart was beating wildly as heat started to course through her veins through to her hands.
Blue eyes blinked in her mind.
She took another breath.
Firelight danced, reflected in that ice.
Her pulse thumped slower, steady.
"Now Talia." She faintly heard Okoye over the roaring of her veins and then, like something clicked, slotted into place, the straining lock inside her snapped open and the full force of her power burst through her hands.
She was vaguely aware of panicked shouts, they thought it was an outburst, and uncontrolled frenzy, but the power ebbed through her like a fiery river filling the space before her, bending and writhing in a flaming torrent in her command.
She didn't feel scared or stressed,
She felt powerful.
"Enough."
Just like that it blinked out of existence, and she locked the gate within her with ease.
Panting heavily she looked up to see not just her teacher staring at her with pride, but T'Challa and a small crowd of Wakandan guards and people gathered at the entrance to the room, not with fear upon their faces, but awe.
"Well Talia, it seems there's not much more we can teach you now." The young king smiled at her gently, gesturing to charred wall behind her, the sizzling molten vibranium.
"Maybe not." She grinned sheepishly, her eyes fading from golden amber to warm brown once as she promptly passed out onto the floor.
~
"Come on, Tally. Why do you just have to leave now?!" Shuri whined petulantly causing Talia to grin, "I think I've quite outstayed my welcome, plus you guys shouldn't have to deal with this hot mess." She smirked gesturing to her self, cackling when Shuri threw a pillow at her in response as she packed her few things away in her bedroom.
"That's ridiculous, we've dealt with worse than you." She drawled teasingly from her current position laying flat out on Talia's bed.
"Oh yeh, I'm sure." She grinned flashing her molten eyes at the young girl, at which Shuri just rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue, "Maybe you should leave, you're such a show off now."
They both laughed, but Talia's smile slid off her face slowly, "I do love it here, really, and I can never repay what your people have done for me."
At this Shuri's face twisted with mischievous glee, "Don't worry I'll think of something you can do to repay me." The driver just shook her head in amusement, snapping her bag shut.
"Right, I guess I'm off, I've said all my goodbyes, and to Okoye and T'Challa."
"All your goodbyes?" Shuri questioned slyly.
Talia paused, hesitating.
The thought of that farewell caused her stomach clench in a bizarre feeling, which she tried to squash down but remained deep in her gut, "I don't want to interrupt him again, he needs uninterrupted time and space to heal, and I can't ruin that for him."
"Don't you think he should decide what he needs."
Her friend said softly.
"It's just better this way." She whispered stubbornly pushing Bucky out of her mind and replacing him with Tony, "I have my own responsibilities to get back to, maybe even a life if I can manage it, this place is a safe haven," she smiled fondly at it, "but it's not the real world, it's not where I belong."
Shuri didn't say anything for a moment, and then got up and wrapped her into a tight hug, "Maybe not to belong, but you will always be welcome- please come visit me I'm going crazy here." She added quickly in a dramatic voice.
"Of course," the woman smiled into the girls shoulder, "Shuri, ...please will you let him know I'v-"
"I will."
"Thank you."
~
She stood on the platform of the Wakandan jet, it's engines whirling and humming loudly, as she looked across to see her friends stood in farewell on the platform.
"Thank you," She yelled over the din, "For everything!"
T'Challa beamed at her.
"Hamba kakuhle, mhlobo wam."
Goodbye (Go well, my friend)
"Salani kakuhle."
Goodbye (Stay well)
She smiled sadly as the aircraft took off and they appeared smaller and smaller as she rose.
Swallowing a small lump in her throat, she swiped her phone open and rang her first contact, it rang twice before connecting.
"Hey Sparky." That familiar voice tentatively greeted her.
"Hey Boss."
Silence lingered for a moment.
"You okay?"
"Yeh, I'm actually really, really good."
He grinned down the line, "Good, are you-"
"I'm coming home Tony."
"Good, ...Pepper missed you."
YOU ARE READING
Stark's Driver ~ A Bucky Barnes Story
FanfictionTalia Scott was a superb racing driver, so why did she end up driving Tony Stark around? And how does she become an Avenger? Well it's a quite a story, trust me. Read on and discover the sarcastic delights of the Avengers favourite bodyguard and ch...
