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egotheplanet · 5 years

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Stories Over Burgers (Happy Hogan and Morgan Stark)

Summary: for some reason I cant stop picturing Morgan as an outcast in school. Like Lilo from Lilo and Stitch. The line from the movie where Lilos talking to Nani and she says “they’re afraid of me” and Nani says “They just don’t know what to say.” BC HER PARENTS ALSO DIED. I mean, can’t you just imagine ? her dad was fucking iron man and she has so many stories she wants to share bc she loved her daddy 3,000 but a mean kid shows her Mysterios ‘evidence’ about tony being a bad guy. Happy ‘Protective Dad’ Hogan drives to pick her up after school only to see her in the courtyard fighting with one of the kids. I kind of changed the FFH mid credits scene to be a little more detailed about Tony’s part in Spider-Man’s inheritance of the tech. roll with it and be sad with me.

Warnings: spoilers to SM:FFH and Endgame

Word Count: 1.7k

•••••••••••••••••

Happy enviously scans the sidewalk where plenty of timely children sit waiting for their guardians to pick them up.

‘You’d think after 6 hours in a chair the kid would be brimming with pent up energy she could spend running to the car. Maybe I should get her a watch that beeps when it’s time to head to the car loop.’ He thought to himself.

Releasing a long slow exhale through his nose, he unbuckled his seat belt and stepped out of the car. He’s come to learn that if you ask politely, the administrative office will summon your student over the loud speakers.

‘What’s holding her up?’

His walk to the office came to slow down when he heard childish yells and taunts. He grumbled at the association the sound held in his mind. ‘Kids probably fighting in the courtyard over a pudding cup.’

As he continued towards the yard in question, the administrative office nestled at the end of it, he narrowed his eyes and listened closer. ‘That kind of sounds like... Morgan?’

His walking pace hastened into a speed walk as the classic ring of students watching a fight came into view.

Just as he suspected, a little girl consisting mostly of long brown hair could be seen and heard yelling and stomping in anguish. Definitely Morgan. The kids started chanting ‘fight’ and Happy knew it was about to get physical. He quickly jumped in to stop it all together. The sight of an adult/ authoritative figure made the bystanders scatter.

“Alright, now what’s goin on here? Break it up!”

His large adult hand wraps around Morgans minuscule arm gently yet firmly to pull her away. The girls purposefully avoid eye contact.

He lets a huff out of his chest in annoyance at the silence.

“You two had a lot to say a couple seconds ago, why so quiet now? What. Happened?” At this point the principal was standing by and taking in the scene quietly.

Morgan whispers, “She said he was a bad guy.”

Happys brows crease together in confusion as he bends down at the knee so he’s eye level with her, “Who was a bad guy?”

Her voice trembles and her hair, previously pinned back with pink clips which were now lost in the mess of grass beneath them, hides her teary eyes as she can only make a sound of frustration. Being young meant articulating the world with a fraction of functioning vocabulary. It was frustrating, Happy knew that. He and Pepper always took their time with Morgan. Especially after all she’s been through.

“Morgan? Who was a bad guy?” His voice is much softer now.

She continues to refuse to make eye contact.

He sighs and his eye level falls to his shoes upon realizing who was awarded the title ‘bad guy’.

Morgan ripped her arm out of his grasp and backed up about a foot. Her eyes stayed low. She needed a little space to think and breathe through it. Just like he taught her.

Her mother always said ‘You’ve got your fathers looks and brain. It’s fitting you get his temper to top it off.” It was never maliciously spoken. Only... melancholic.

Happy resumed standing and exchanged words with the principal.

It felt like an eternity to Morgan. Her tummy felt upset at the thought of getting into trouble. But it felt even more upset when the girl began to preach about someone she didn’t know.

“Morgan? Did you hear me?” He remained standing tall this time as he spoke to her. “Your principal said you have to stay home tomorrow.” He’s seen her enough to know when she’s about to explode with emotion. “You caused a scene and almost broke into a fight. Your mom is gonna discipline you accordingly. It’s gonna be fine.”

Morgan’s breathing slightly quickened and her throat felt tight. Her eyes were burning hot as she looked up at him and the oceans began pouring out of her tear ducts.

“I’m sorry, Happy.”

He believed her wholeheartedly.

“Let’s just... Let’s head home, okay?” He held his hand out. Open and inviting.

She graciously accepted.

They walked side by side all the way to the car.

Holding open the door, he felt both sad and proud as she buckled herself in.

——————

“Two cheeseburgers, one without onions or pickles and the other with extra onions and pickles. One large fry, one small HI-C and one large Diet Coke. That’ll be all, thank you.”

She played with her hands as he ordered.

The backseat wasn’t very eventful when you lose your iPad for causing a ‘ruckus’ as her mother put it. Happy of course called Pepper as soon as they got into the car. The iPad was the only thing around at the moment that would suffice as a good punishment till they got home. Then she’d get a whole other talk and loss of privilege.

The smell of the car quickly turned from clean leather to hot French fries and ketchup as the bags came in through the window.

Happy put them in the empty passengers seat and rolled into a parking spot on the other side of the building. He turned the car off and passed back her order.

“Don’t forget to use a napkin this time.” He spoke after taking a chunk out of his burger. “Your last ketchup stain was a pain.”

Her lips perked up for the first time in a half hour. A long time for a child like Morgan not to smile.

“That rhymed, Happy!”

He felt a rush of relief pass through him. She wasn’t too upset to enjoy his Seuss-like antics.

“Yeah, I guess it did.” They looked at each other through the rear view window. After a considerable amount of time passed he spoke. “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

The rustling of her burger wrapper ceased.

“No.”

Happy ate a few more bites, finishing the rest of his sandwich. He didn’t want to pry but he needed to make sure this wouldn’t happen again.

He didn’t care about her defending herself. It was the right thing to do. He cared about her feelings being hurt in a place she’s supposed to be happy and learning.

“Can you at least tell me how it started?”

The car was deathly silent for a few seconds straight. The air was loud, louder than they were. Just when he thought the entire subject was a lost cause, he heard a meek voice.

“My teacher was talking about rockets. The space ones.” She paused to recollect, glancing in the mirror and noticing him offer his full attention. “So I told him about daddy’s rockets. I told him how he used them to fly and save people.”

She had to pause between a few words to take audible breaths. It was a hard subject to cover.

“And then I had to go potty so he excused me and when I came back, my table buddies were talking.” She stopped for a couple seconds to take a sip of her juice. “They said their parents watch the news and that it said daddy was a bad guy. That he didn’t really save people and he tried to hurt them.” Her voice was soft and held a confused tone.

Happys heart sank as he tried to think up a way to steer her out of his information hole. He didn’t want her only memories of her father to be tarnished by the bored pieces of crazed writers and an insane super villain. He paused before speaking with a hopeful tone.

“Morgan, do you know how well I knew your dad?” She shook her head. “Well, I started as just a driver. Taking him from spot to spot.”

She perked up. “Like how you drive me to school?”

He smiled slightly. “That’s right. And then he promoted me to head of security.”

“He said you were forehead of secur-”

“See, he always got those words a little fumbled. Th-That wasn’t my title. The point is— Let’s get back on track— the point is: your dad trusted me.” He spoke quickly and jumbled while attempting to get the conversation back on course as she giggled out loud. “We weren’t just people who worked together. We were friends. Close friends. I knew a lot about your dad. I knew stuff about him before he did sometimes.” He thought back to the start of Tony and Peppers relationship. “So believe me when I say this.. are you listening?”

Sensing the change in pace at the end of his speech, she nodded, fully captivated by his words.

“Good, okay.” He locked eyes with her in the mirror. “Your dad loved you so much, kiddo. He loved you. He loved your mom too.” He took a moment to unbuckle his seatbelt and turn around so he could look at her formally. “He loved people. He protected you, your mom and everyone in the world until the very end.”

She was too young to grasp the levity of his words but he continued. She needed to hear this so her father could remain the hero he was in her little mind.

“He never once hurt anyone intentionally without the protection of everyone else he loved in mind. Your table buddies didn’t know him the way I did. So you can trust me and ignore them, okay? Your dad was a good man, not a bad guy. I would know.” She was quiet. Not the bad quiet but the thinking to herself quiet.

“Okay.”

He chuckled softly at her graceful lack of words. His were definitely too much for an eight year old.

“You know what? I’m gonna tell you something.” He held a joking tone which was barely above a whisper.

“What?” She matched his tone with a small smile.

“Your dads rockets didn’t always work. Sometimes they knocked him onto his butt.” He smiled fondly at the memories as she laughed.

“That’s funny, Happy.” She munched on a French fry and sipped the rest of her juice. Her feet kicked and swayed the whole drive home. Her mood had significantly increased.

As Happy drove himself home later that night, he reflected on how much Tony gave to others. The muddy and wrong picture Mysterio painted of him wasn’t right and wasn’t fair.

It was then and there he decided that for every bad story Morgan heard about Tony that made her cry, he would tell her two more that would make her laugh. Happy meal included.

And boy, did he have enough stories to last a lifetime.

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heymusings · 5 years

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My next Disney prep analysis goes to LILO and Stitch (just saying at this time next week I’ll be enjoying Animal Kingdom): Despite the inclusion of aliens I view Lilo and Stitch as one of the most realistic Disney films made-- in terms of character and moral lesson. More than any other Disney film, particularly those of the time and earlier the body shapes and sizes are a bit more realistic and varied, especially when looking at the two female leads of Nani and Lilo. True, Nani is still a pretty slim woman, but her proportions are more realistic than a lot of the my-head-is-bigger-than-my-waist princesses and all characters don’t have the slim face and chin, and button nose. Lilo is short and even rounded in facial features showing her youth. The relationship between the sisters was realistic- there was love and hate, unlike a lot of Disney family relationships that are cute but sort of generic-feel-the-love things where no one yells at each other or has arguments. Disney films tend to be guilty of this concept when the main characters actually....well, have a family. Although the trend in showing this more realistic family dynamic has begun to pop up more and more in more recent Disney films (Incredibles, Inside Out, and Brave). Lilo is, like many of her animated brethren of similar age, a troubled youth with an overactive imagination. The only difference here is that Lilo’s problems are real. She is, quite frankly, an emotionally disturbed little girl, not simply one with quirks outside of the acceptable. When another girl calls out her strangeness, Lilo attacks-- behavior that in the real world is not acceptable, but it is generally the kind of behavior associated with children from a broken home. Lilo is not the Elsa or Anna, she is not a misguided yet hopeful soul filled with a wanderlust that cannot be satiated. Lilo is a girl with problems, ones that we can clearly relate to because they are real. Lilo acts like a girl going through something that is bigger and stranger than she can understand.This is because that is precisely what is happening to Lilo– her parents are dead and she is left with her 20 something sister who suddenly finds herself needing to parent Lilo. Humans all react to that level of pain and loss, despite our age or maturity, in an irrational, powerful, and generally selfish manner (as Lilo does). She is teetering on the edge of being taken away by Social Services. Lilo does not understand this, so she continues to make Nani’s already difficult life harder. Her actions when he comes to survey and assess the home are comical bordering on the extreme, but they still make us look and ask the same thing Nani herself does – “Do you want to be taken away?” Even Nani’s situation is incredibly realistic, she may be mature, but her trouble finding and keeping a job as well as her sisterly fights with Lilo show that despite her stepping up to parent Lilo, she is doing so by necessity to keep her family together, not because she if ready for such huge responsibility. The character of Stitch is an interesting mirror of Lilo. Stitch, being created to be nothing more than an agent chaos and insanity has the same wanton and selfish desire to destroy. These two are true cinematic foils: Lilo finds it difficult not to wreak havoc on her surroundings, her profound distress buried deep enough that it manifests in such displays. Whereas Stitch cannot, quite frankly, do anything besides destroy. Lilo attempts to reach out and grasp those things from her past that she has lost and fill those empty spaces with anger and sadness – Stitch has no history whatsoever, and can find satisfaction only in removing the history of others. Stitch gives Lilo a purpose, to make him a “productive member or society”, filling the absence inside of her with the presence of a true friend. She, on the other hand, is the much-needed proverbial and literal leash to rein in his determination to obliterate just about everything. Nani’s balance comes in the form of both her love for her sister/family, but also David. I like that Nani and David’s relationship was present but not center stage and it wasn’t painted as some dire thing where Nani had to either date him or life would fall apart (that tends to be the underlying impression I get from the princess movies!). The romance is never confirmed nor denied, because it is simply not the focus of the story. Despite the seeming romantic connections both are aware of things beyond each other and their responsibilities and Nani’s concentration is almost solely on dealing with Lilo. However, it is David who is often the one pulling Nani and Lilo away from work to spend time together and genuinely be happy. In fact, David places his friendship with both sisters above having a romantic relationship with Nani. He was one of the first in the trend of Disney males that started to focus more on realistic traits that attract a partner-- where he already had them the Disney males that would come later would eventually find the same traits but through character growth (after all those male characters are more at the forefront of their respective films and can be afforded the time to discover and grow into those traits). One of the more interesting aspects of film is that there are no villains, a rarity in Disney films). Sure, there are antagonists galore – the imminent, ticking time bomb of Mr. Bubbles, Jumba and Pleakley’s misguided attempts to capture Stitch, the looming threat of galactic politics – but not a single one of them is evil. In fact, the resolution of the film is one of all characters coming to terms with their own personal mistakes and misgivings. Jumba and Pleakley stay behind, live with, and help Lilo and Nani. Bubbles uses his apparently substantial government connections to keep the family safe, and even the galactic government itself acknowledges that sometimes rules must be bent to protect what is important. Captain Gantu grudgingly acknowledges the Grand Councilwoman’s decision to allow Stitch to remain on Earth, when it would have been so easy to write him as a rogue agent deserving harsher justice.

#disney #lilo and stitch

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