#the color palette needed a lot of brightening

[ken-branagh]

BEATRICE & BENEDICK MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (1993), dir. Kenneth Branagh

#much ado about nothing #william shakespeare #shakespeare #kenneth branagh #emma thompson #filmedit #perioddramaedit #userbbelcher #tvandfilm #muchadoedit #*edit #HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN! #love you so much <3<3 #and i love this pairing #always wanted to gif this sweet moment! #her hand on his chest <3 #the color palette needed a lot of brightening #and fixing because it was almost pitch black #just as the kiss happens #it looks much clearer now #enjoy! :)

[stealanity]

hey guys, let's go for a big announcement okay?

so, we're near my three-year anniversary on this blog. the 13th of march will mark the day i posted my first piece of writing on this platform (color palette will forever be my precious baby). and before i say anything about the negative aspects of this post, i would like to thank all the people who have supported me and my work for years / months now. every time i received a little interaction, a little message in my askbox, or feedback about one of my writings, my heart couldn't help but vibrate with happiness. so, i'd like to extend my warmest thanks to everyone who kindly took the time to express their opinions on what i've written over the past three years, these little words mean so much to me, in ways you can't imagine.

and, this is where i'm going to start talking about the negative things i have to say about this post : i'm wondering if i'm going to continue writing and posting here.

for months i've been thinking of closing this blog and stopping writing : as most of you know, tumblr writers complain a lot about the lack of feedback on what we produce. i don't mean to blame you all, but it's a real problem that never ceases to discourage every writer behind the computer. i understand that some of you are shy, and that's perfectly all right : but the askbox anonymity option doesn't exist for nothing. even if you only come to say "your last writing was great" and you think it's lame to leave a message just to say that, tell yourself that this simple little sentence can brighten a writer's day. i know you hear the same thing over and over again, but if a lot of people are talking about it, don't you think that proves that it's a real problem for us?

in other words, the lack of interaction from readers to writers is the biggest pet peeve of writers on this platform. just imagine : you walk into a store, and a writer is alone at his signing table, no one stopping to listen to him talk about the book he wrote with all his heart, sleepless nights spent writing, all so that no one would stop and take an interest in him. how would you feel about this person? you'd be sad and sorry for him, right? well then, tell yourself that, it's exactly like this writer, that we here, as tumblr writers, feel when no one gives us feedback. you feel ignored. we give our time to offer you something to read about your favs, completely free of charge. we give you the opportunity to imagine scenarios, and ask us to write down your ideas precisely, all so that, when your request is granted, we have no feedback on what you thought about it? this won't last much longer, believe me — because little by little, all the writers here are losing hope and patience, and deciding to stop doing what they love just because they're constantly ignored and not thanked for their work and efforts. yet, i know a lot of writers who deserve to be praised and complimented for their talent every second of their existence, and i feel so, so sorry for them that they have to endure such a thing. and, if you look closely, you'll see that it's only the writers themselves who leave feedback on other writers' work — because we know how important it is and how much we need it every day.

which is why i'm announcing today that i'm questioning the future of this blog. i haven't made a decision yet, maybe i'll do it tomorrow or in three months, whatever. but the problem is there, said and repeated, over and over again, and i'm more than discouraged.

nevertheless, thank you to all the writers on this platform for all you do. you sometimes make my heart skip a beat, my eyes water, laugh until i cry and smiling from ear to ear, because you're that good. you're so good at giving people chills and filling their heads with stories, with your perfectly chosen words and your marvelous ideas, each more incredible and interesting than the last. and i'll never stop complimenting the talent of the writers here, because you guys are truly amazing and tumblr wouldn't be the same without you. i know it's hard to evolve here, but know that among all those likes, there's this one reblog that makes all the difference.

you are so brave, and i thank you for always being here to share your talent.

anyway, let's end it here !

thank you for your attention, have a nice day, or night, or anything,

— xoxo, matty

[lover-of-mine]

Hi, Anna!! When I first saw the new pictures, I thought Eddie was in uniform but he's just in blue??? I need to know what you think of the colors going on here!

Maggie, baby, I love that you asked this because I was about to make a post about it kspsmapakpskaa because here's the thing, I saw the picture and was like "hang on I need to check something" because the pattern on Buck's shirt is not something Buck wears a lot (assuming that really is Buck), but it reminded me of the jacket he's wearing in the hospital after the baby was born. (Brightened version of the still so we can see that it's a denim shirt)

The pattern is not the same but it made me realize something else.

Because checking for this I realized Eddie is fully blue when he calls Marisol, like fully blue, the flannel, the shirt, the pants.

And it's interesting because we know Eddie is the green character. At least he should be, with Ana and the 2 occasion with Buck. Sure, Chris' birth he's the blue one, but that feels wrong, even with Shannon in s2, Shannon is never in blue but he's usually in his army green and adjacent shades.

But to be fair, Eddie likes his denim shirts, so we need more context to say if they mean something by that or if it's just them working on Eddie's color palette, since his palette is very greens and blues and greys and browns. I don't fully think it is, because the wash of that shirt is not the correct shade, his denim stuff are usually lighter and his general color palette is more earthy. Honestly, that particular wash feels a bit bright in comparison to the colors Eddie usually wears, but that's more my opinion than an actual fact.

But dude could be off to a date with Marisol since the actress is allegedly coming back and he's blue because of that and they are gonna play with the shades the same way they do with Buck. It could be them playing with him being more open to stuff by getting him out of the army green armour. It could be anything really. In the end, we need more context osasokasaoksasaokas.

#911 #911 spoilers #911 speculation #i really need a tag for asks #maggie 💜 #i have theories but i dont like getting a lot of speculation going over a picture #its hard to get all the context necessary yk #i am very interested on the hand on the shoulder thing #thats my main thing there oajksoaksasokasoas #the blue could just be blue

[zarvasace]

@unexpectedtraveler made this post (to which @lazyowl and I added) about whether or not a Red+Vio combination would simply disappear, since magenta light doesn't technically exist.

Anyway, long story short, I made some very pretty colors.

I love being in a fandom (two!) where this sort of thing is relevant.

More explanation of what I did under the cut!

Okay, so I own nine colors of paint—cool red (alizarin), warm red (cadmium light), cool yellow (ochre), warm yellow (cadmium), cool blue (ultramarine), warm blue (pthalo), viridian, raw umber, and burnt sienna. Oh, and white. I mix all my colors from those. You can see all but raw umber and burnt sienna on the palette across the top, since those are just browns I didn't need.

I made red from a combination of the two, since cadmium is kind of orange and alizarin is not quite bright enough. Green is viridian with some cadmium yellow to brighten and warm it up a little. Blue is mostly pthalo blue, but I added a bit of ultramarine that I don't think made much of a difference. (Pthalo is temperamental and likes to overwhelm everything.) I made my violet from alizarin and ultramarine.

Okay so the thing to know about mixing these pigments is that each pigment acts differently. Warm colors like to dominate a mix, but so do a few specific pigments. I go through a lot of ultramarine because it's rather unpigmented, I need a lot to influence another color. You also have to pay attention to warm and cool versions of colors, since they mix differently.

Since a lot of colors can get pretty dark, standard practice is to mix them with bits of white to see the color better. The titanium white I have cools and desaturates colors. I added little bits of the whitened colors in the corners to show them off better. :)

Red and green are complementary colors, but these specific hues aren't perfect complements, so they didn't make gray, they made brown. A very pretty brown!

Since the red and blue that I had were both pretty warm but not entirely, they didn't mix into the prettiest purple. That gray is really nice, though.

Blue and green mixed the way you'd expect, a nice teal that doesn't need much explanation.

Green and violet aren't complements, but they're close, so they desaturated each other into a nice cool brown color.

The violet and blue mixed just made a cooler violet, even though the blue was warmer. I like that color too.

And then easter color tints at the bottom because I had an extra space! :D

In conclusion: if Link is light, then Red+Vio only exists because of a brain trick. If Link is oil paint, then you should probably worry about Red+Green canceling each other out, if Red gets too cool. Green+Vio need to watch out, too.

#my art #ahaha this was fun #four swords #lu four #both kinda #its fandom-agnostic #half fours #painting

[bargalaxies]

can i ask you how the DUCK you get your arcane gifs so silky smooth? even the ones that have tons of super bright colors just look flawless and it seems like wizardry to me

lolll thanks, glad you like them 😄 Generally speaking, I have a tutorial tag where I've answered questions about my coloring and sharpening process. It’s the same way I make Arcane sets.

More specific to your question, you definitely want to make sure you gif from as HQ a source as possible always, and don’t oversharpen your gifs. (I’ve talked more extensively about that here.) That’ll immediately make your job a lot easier. I think coloring vibrant gifs is the harder part, so I’ll explain my thought process for that some more.

Gifs can only have 256 colors, so I’d think about the following:

You should try to make as much “negative space” as possible instead of involving the “actual” colors. You can usually do this with the background, because that’s typically not what the main focus of the gif is. If you do this, it frees up more space in the color table for the colors you actually want in your gif. This is probably the most important thing you could do.

The more you limit your palette (i.e. making a gif blue-themed, or red-themed, etc.), the more shades of that color can be included in the color table, so the nicer it’ll look. I’d say if you want to include a lot of shades in a gif, you should limit yourself to two.

The more colors you want to include in your gif, the less shades of those colors there should be, so that each color can be represented with the minimum possible in your color table.

Also, in general, smaller gifs mean typically mean less pixels/colors, so those will look nicer if you want to include a lot of colors in your gif. That being said, I like big gifs a lot, so mostly I try to make those work :P

I’ve included some example gifs and commentary on how/why I colored them the way they did under the cut for further context. Hopefully, I’ve been detailed enough, but if you have any more questions, my inbox/DMs are always open :)

Example 1

Caitlyn is what people are going to be looking at in this gif, so we want to make sure there are enough colors for her in the table to make her look good. In the original screencaps, the background would take more more colors than we want it to because of the trees and fog, as would her gun:

So, when coloring this scene, I tried to darken the shadows of her gun and brighten the highlights in the background as much as possible without making the gif have too much contrast (which can also ruin a gif, imo; you kind of just need to eyeball that part). I did this with Curves, Selective Color, and Levels.

In the end, I’d say at least a third of the gif is just white and black. Therefore, that leaves more colors for Caitlyn herself, which make the gif look nicer to the viewer.

Example 2

I can’t do the same thing to the background that I did for the previous example, because I want it to be seen as part of the gif with Vi and Jinx. So instead, I decided to darken the shadows on the bottom half of Vi and Jinx themselves as much as possible. This is because when people look at this gif, they will primarily notice Vi hugging Jinx, which is mostly just the middle of the gif. They probably won’t be paying close attention to the bottom half of Vi and Jinx that much.

Since this was a bit difficult to do just using adjustment layers, I literally added a blank layer of black paint on the bottom and put a multiply filter over it. Look at the gif again — the edges of the “shadow” there don’t actually move. You can see the edges pretty easily across Jinx’s gun. That’s that layer!

But I’d hope that most people either wouldn’t notice it until it got pointed out, or noticed it but think it looked “real” enough that the gif still looks good in general. I’ve used this idea for some of my other gifs too.

Example 3

This is an example of the “limited color palette” I mentioned earlier. The less colors you include in a gif, the more space you can just devote to shades of that color in the table, so the result will look nicer. This can be hard to do and make it look consistent, though. For the above gif, I actually layer masked the entire background to have that magenta hue because I couldn’t figure out another way to do it lol. Tbh it took a lot of time and effort and I’m not sure I’d do it again. But I do think the end product looks really nice, so if you want to put in the time to do something like that, go for it!

That being said, I also think these types of gifs (themed colors) are not really used for gifsets of shot-for-shot scenes (i.e. the first example gif), but more for “artistic” kinds of sets. Since you’re not trying to follow a scene shot-for-shot, you can make it easier on yourself by picking scenes that will be easy to gif in this manner. Here’s an example of a gif from such a set.

All I did here was shift the hue/saturation meter on the original blue sky background to yellow. I was able to do this because blue was not a color actually seen on Mel here at all, so changing the cyans/blues in the screencaps didn’t affect her look. Since the yellow background shades are fairly uniform, yellow is the color of her jewelry, and we get a lot of solid black in her hair and outfit, you see that Mel looks very HQ.

Example 4

This is a more “multi-colored” gif. We can see red, yellow, green, blue, and purple. However, each of these colors have large areas that have similar shades. When coloring the screencap, I tried to make these areas as uniform as possible. So, not as many colors in the table need to be occupied for each hue to represent all of them in the gif. That’s how the gif looks colorful, but still smooth.

Example 5

It kind of looks like there’s a lot going on in this gif, but again, it’s mostly a few colors. A lot of this gif is the blacks and whites, important as discussed earlier. The main colors are still magenta and blue, with some uniform yellow/orange highlights. You can see this reflected in this gif’s color table, which is largely shades of magenta, and then blue:

So, it still looks fine when saved.

#not an edit #anon #inbox #tutorial #basically i think a lot of making gifs look nice is trying to fake things as much as possible if that makes sense #anw mb got a little long there but tbh i'd been thinking abt making a gifmaking tutorial series lately or wtv #so might as well write smn i can link back to if i ever do lol

[obsidiancreates]

My Concepts For A TMNT 2012 Themed Makeup Collection

First off: Individual small eyeshadow palettes for each character. And I mean small, like, probably just 3 or 4 shades each.

So like, one shade the same color as their masks, one the color of their eye colors, and one the shade of green their skintone is. And I don't mean "Eh purple but like any shade of purple" I mean EXACT SHADE MATCH. So that gives us these nice little trio palettes, I would have them all be All Matte No Shimmers/Glitters, because...

Companion Palatte: Out The Sewers Like Lazer Beams

This is a larger palette, probably around 15 shades, 18 at the very most. It's made of colors taken from scene backgrounds, enemies color schemes, and other characters. Like a more saturated pinky-purple than Donnie's is named "Irmabot Highlights" and a neon pink named "Kick Some Kraang" and such. Obviously some dark navy blues and such to represent the common background color.

Other Companion Palette: Lean Green Ninja Team

This one is 15-18 shades as well and is based around the non-turtle main/ally characters. "Hajime" being a brown shade taken from Splinter's coat, for example, "Hey There Red" being a shade of orange like April's hair with a yellow shimmer to it like her shirt, "GOONGALA" being a high-inpact shimmer with a gunmetal gray base and lots of white shimmer (not just to match with his color scheme but also like, He Hits People Hard Enough To Make Them See TV Static As They Go Down). Things like that. This is a slightly more neutral based palette so it also includes like, the color of their shells and wrappings and such (we could also put these into the 4 palettes based on The Boys specifically, I just wanted to keep those as small and no-repeat-shades as possible).

Turtle Power Cream Color Corrector Palette/Wheel In A Shell Shape

Dude their colors are LITERALLY perfect for color correction. Orange/peachy tones cancel out blue tones like undereye darkness/dark spots left by bad breakouts, purple/lavender tones help brighten, green cancels out redness in the skin like angry breakouts or rosacea, blue is less of a color corrector though and more of a Shade Adjuster however including it means you could still mix it with a foundation that's too Warm to cool down the shade, just might work best with a cream foundation father than a liquid since you need to mix it in directly, not just apply product over it.

Anyway.

MAN I LOVE BEING A TURTLE! Blush

Same shade as those little amine-style blushy bits they get on their faces, and kind of that pattern? Like the little shape/style it is, in the actual pan. I just think it's be cute.

Makeup Tools Shaped Like Their Weapons

Brush with a Bo style handle and the actual bristles are gray and angled like the blade at the end. One of those things people use to block their crease from getting eyeshadow fallout shaped like Mikey's bladed part (I tried looking up the name but there were a few variations of that and I wasn't sure which was right), angled eyeliner/brow brush like Leo's blades, eyeliner pens shaped like Raph's Sai, and I'm thinking an actual hand fan that looks like April's tessan to help dry the face is you use setting spray during makeup.

I've been trying to come up with fun lipsticks but I can't think of anything rn I'll update later though if I come up with anything.

#tmnt 2012 #tmnt 2k12

[farfromstrange]

Foreigner's God: Chapter 2

Main Masterlist

Pairing: Matt Murdock x OFC

Chapter Summary: If it weren’t for Father Lantom, good catholic boy Matt Murdock would’ve long given up his faith. The events of the day before left him with more questions than answers. Meanwhile, Eliza struggles with the fact that her world just exploded right before her eyes and there’s no one left for her to talk to. But they both have one thing in common, still – their desperate need to stop whatever it is that’s happening in New York City. Though with the two of them, disaster is (nearly) inevitable, and it appears that this is only the beginning of the end.

Warnings: Religious descriptions, language, canon typical violence, guns, blood, a tiny bit of angst, but it's actually a lot of angst, it’s just a very small amount compared to the upcoming chapters, panic attack, suicidal ideations, allusions to self-harm

Word Count: 18.7k

Read Chapter 2: Raise A Little Hell here on AO3!

Light broke through the colored glass, milky, fog-stained windows. The walls stood several feet tall, with faces and Latin letters set in stone. Statues rose from the stone, lifeless faces staring down from up above. 

The sun stood high and mighty that day, shining a beautiful path through the open doors of the church. The light danced patterns on the glass and projected its diverse color palette onto the wooden benches below. 

The air outside was hot and dry, with no clouds to be seen in the sky. The laughter of children filled the atmosphere with a sense of lightness. The early noon was peaceful. A beautiful day for both young and old. For the adventure seekers and the socially quiet ones. It was one of those days when almost everyone felt at least a small sliver of happiness. 

Couples walked the streets, tourists admired the ancient outlay of the building and those traveling from and to their workplace had a much happier sway in their steps than usual - summer days like those brought out the best in people. Sunlight managed to brighten everyone’s day, even if it was just for a minute or so. The world finally seemed better. On days like these, humanity seemed to be healing. 

“Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned,” he said into the darkness of the chamber. 

A newlywed couple crossed the street. They were talking about the family with children before them, talked about what they’d do if they had a baby. They just got married, it’s too soon. It was clear the woman yearned for a baby of her own while her husband seemed rather wary of the idea. Two people whose world views were entirely different and yet, they married each other simply because they loved each other. 

On the other side of the street, there was an old woman. A teenager offered to help her cross, to which she only said, “I may be old, but I can walk myself just fine.” The teenager was left behind flabbergasted. 

Crying filled one of the heated apartments on the fifth floor. Soft, quiet sobbing behind closed bathroom doors. Desperate pleas from a woman for the love of her life to just open the door. She didn’t. She sat on the closed toilet seat, tasting her tears. 

After months of IVF treatment, they’d finally gotten pregnant. They were married, and happy. They’d only had one choice and the woman lost their baby. She was loved regardless – who would not? – but she blamed herself plenty to substitute for her wife’s kindness in the matter. 

In an apartment below, a family arrived with their newborn. They already had three children, while the woman above struggling with the miscarriage had suffered through months of hormone therapy for nothing. 

She was happy for them, of course. She wasn’t one of those pathetic people who took her pain out on others. 

It took a toll on her, knowing her neighbors were happier than she’d ever been – they had what she wanted . Her wife could survive it, but her? She’d never wanted anything more than a baby. 

Life isn’t fair. It’s vile and it doesn’t make exceptions for anyone, no matter how good-hearted they might be. 

Matt Murdock sat in the crammed confession booth at church. Father Lantom always smelled of rosemary and roses, sometimes candle wax and laundry detergent from when he picked up his robes at the dry cleaners earlier that day. 

“It’s been three days since my last confession,” Matt said. He stared at the red curtain that protected him from the outer world. “A lot happened in the past three days, Father. Some of which has been making me struggle with questions of morality.”

“Last week you told me you’ve been questioning your faith, now you’re telling me you’re struggling with morality,” Father Lantom voiced from the other side, muffled by the thin wall between them. “What changed?” he asked. 

“I met someone.”

“A woman?”

Matt chuckled. “How’d you know?”

“Well, there’s not much that gets you so riled up.”

“I met her during my… other life, that I lead. Uh, I’ve been trying to find words to describe her, but I come up with nothing.”

“What about her have you questioning your morality, exactly?”

He took a deep breath. He remembered the way she smelled. Recalling it, his nostrils flared - he breathed her scent as if she was right there next to him. He could almost feel her close to him. The scent of vanilla and green plants, soft dirt after rainy days, tulips, books, coffee, and used leather. Her body was a mixture of rough edges and soft skin, her mind a labyrinth of mysteries. 

“She’s… different,” Matt said. “Or she’s not, I’m not exactly sure. She can do things , father. She’s witty, can’t close her mouth for the life of her, and I know for a fact she’s way smarter than most people out there, but she’s also violent. She’s violent in a way I usually despise, Father, because I don’t understand. I can’t understand her. It’s driving me crazy.”

“But you don’t despise her?” Father Lantom said. 

He leaned back. The sudden surge of energy still sat heavy in his chest cavity. A shock of electricity exploded on the outside, but instead of staying there, it wrapped around his soul and his perception of reality. He felt her in every bone of his body. She had this hold on him, he lay awake at night still feeling it rummaging around inside of him. 

Matt let out a breath he’d been holding. “I don’t despise her,” he said. “I know I should, but I don’t. She got into trouble and while it wasn’t entirely on me, I felt like it was my fault. She jumps head-first into danger, that’s her problem, and she just won’t listen, but she saved my life and I owe her for that. I couldn’t just leave her, you know. And now I’ve put her in a position that she can’t get out of.”

“Let me guess, she knows both parts of you, but she doesn’t know they go together?”

“Yes.”

Father Lantom hummed in response. 

“I feel this need to protect her, but she also scares me,” Matt told me. “She has this… darkness inside, Father. She thinks she’s made for evil, that she’s doomed. She doesn’t show it but I could tell.”

“Reminds me of someone I know,” the priest chirped from the other side.

He chuckled. “I’ve never met anyone with her abilities. I can’t help but find that… endearing. I believe that’s the word I’ve been looking for. Does that make me a bad person, father?”

“She doesn’t sound so bad to me, just troubled. But you’re troubled too, Matthew,” he said. “Perhaps you complete each other.” Then, he asked the dreaded question, “Would you like to get to know her?”

“I feel she’s the kind of person you can’t easily forget.” 

“Then don’t.” A simple statement that weighed heavier than a pile of bricks. 

Matt chuckled, but the chuckle was thick with unshed tears. He was tired, exhausted, and his heart ached. He didn’t know why. His brain was on fire since the previous night though he’d made it out without a scratch - she occupied his every thought, and it made him sick. 

“I was afraid of this,” he sighed. “Of meeting someone that might turn my entire perception of life upside down.”

“Why?” Father Lantom asked again. “Because you’ve mapped out your life and it doesn’t fit with what you’ve planned? Or because you chose to be lonely a long time ago, trying to protect the people you love?”

Matt loosened his tie. The thin fabric seemed too tight all of a sudden. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’m afraid. Not because of her, although she scares me in a way that’s beyond anything I can explain. No, I’m afraid of the truth, Father. I’m afraid of the person I’m becoming.”

“I don’t think that’s it at all. Let me ask you this,” - he turned further to the small window - “This woman, would she understand?”

“Understand what?”

“This part of you. You know, the other one.”

“She’s been hiding behind an invisible mask all her life. She’s… she’s a hero, and I don’t mean that as a trait, I mean that literally. Do I believe she’d understand? The scary part isn’t that I do, the scary part is that she wouldn’t mind and that would put her in terrible danger. We’re alike, too alike, I think.”

“But you like that about her. I can hear it in your voice. She might scare you, but I think it’s more of a, uh, thrill than fear in itself.”

“So what, you’re saying I should act on these… thoughts I have?” Matt asked. 

“Perhaps. But it’s your choice, Matthew,” Father Lantom told him. “You have to decide if you want to try and be happy or if you want to continue living in pretense and make this all harder on yourself.”

His head hung low as the church bells rang. Black shoes carried over white stone. The sun shone down on him, heat creeping up his body through his black suit. 

He readied his cane to begin his walk over the sidewalk, towards his place of work. As he made his way forward, someone bumped into him from behind. He’d heard him coming, knowing the boy was barely paying attention and he apologized for that, too, but he couldn’t help but swallow a thick lump of anger. Lately, Matt was more on edge than usual. 

He sighed. The previous night proved to him that he was right about Hell’s Kitchen - something was happening right under his nose. There was little else on his mind as he walked to the Nelson & Murdock office ground. His friends needed him, not Daredevil, but Daredevil seemed all that was on his mind. He couldn’t help it. 

If meeting Eliza had changed anything, it was his perception. She made him look deeper. He was relentless, and always got his way, but so was she. She had that kind of gift that would’ve worked well in law enforcement. She could talk and connect dots, something she learned at SHIELD back then. But she also had a darkness that outmatched his by worlds, and that’s where their similarities stopped. 

She wasn’t afraid to risk death to get what she wanted. She fought with ease. Her heartbeat always remained calm. The only time he heard it change was the second her name was mentioned. The knowledge that there was something hidden between the lines kept him awake; something was happening in Hell’s Kitchen and that young woman knew it too - she was the only connection. 

Matt ran straight into something bigger than him, and perhaps he had to change his perception of what was right and wrong to get ahead of it. 

✧

On the other side of the city, the mood was just as low, if not lower.

Eliza grew up as a child made for the sole purpose of a war she would’ve never fought in if she’d been in control over her powers. Her only purpose was to follow orders, and her only goal was to hurt people. Then, in the blink of an eye, she became a hero, an Avenger, and she accepted that being on the front lines of the world’s greatest heroes wasn’t such a bad way to go out. She relied on them to stick around, to give meaning to her miserable life, but even that was over now. She was nothing but a girl without qualifications, stuck with Pepper Potts at Stark Industries to make some money because no other corporation would hire someone without a high school or college degree. She loved Pepper, she really did, but knowing Tony’s money and name were her only options besides homelessness did some damage to her ego. 

The day passed by agonizingly. At some point, Eliza attempted to use the coffee machine in the break room, but the only thing that came out was hot steam that burned her fingers to a painful degree. If her day hadn’t been cursed already, she sure as hell was convinced of it now. She was hexed. 

She left the compound to buy some Starbucks, drinks too expensive to count. Too shy to ask Pepper for any more money, she paid the remaining amount out of her very empty pockets. On the way back, she ran into someone and almost dropped one of the cups. Sprinkles of coffee squirted on her already burned hand. Even worse, seconds after the accident, it started to rain. By the time she got back, the coffee was wet and the brims tasted salty. She chose to hand them out anyway, considering she paid half a fortune for the beverages. 

Eliza counted the numbers on the bottom of her laptop. The sky darkened outside. 

“Liz,” Happy said from the doorway. 

Eliza looked up. “Hey.” She closed the tab. 

“You ready to go home?”

She slipped the flash drive from her laptop. “Yeah,” she said. She closed the device and put it in her bag. 

Stupid dreams, she thought. When would she ever learn?

✧

The drive to her apartment was quiet. Eliza watched the lights pass by. The closer they got to Hell’s Kitchen, the darker the streets grew. They drove through the all too familiar neighborhood. No cars or people around. Some drunkards stumbled out of a bar around the corner. 

Happy pulled up to her apartment complex. “Hey, kid,” he said and turned around. “I’m sorry about last night.” He faced her. “Tony had no right to talk to you that way.”

“But he did,” she said. “You can’t change that. I know you want to and I appreciate it, but you can’t help me. Tony made up his mind.”

“I know.”

“Thanks for the ride, by the way.” She patted him on the shoulder. 

Happy smiled. He let the window down as she walked around the limousine to get into the building. “Be safe!” he shouted after her. 

She lifted two fingers in the air. “Promise.”

“Good. See you tomorrow.”

The clock showed 8:30 pm. If her calculations were correct, she was just in time. 

The fire escape she sat on almost every night, just thinking about life and beyond, stopped directly at her window. She climbed through the open slot and into the night. It had gotten colder. The city milked the last rays of sunshine during the day, which made the nights significantly cooler, yet not uncomfortable. The temperature change was nice. She liked cool winds and summer rain, but only when it wasn’t drenching her coffee order in salt water. 

Eliza climbed from the fire escape to the roof of the connecting building. She wasn’t going to stop, physically couldn’t do so. 

That was one of the many reasons why she ended up a few feet from the science center in Manhattan. Police and security swarmed the place. They stood guard at the entrance, checked bags, and ran background checks on those who didn’t have one. She could make out at least a dozen officers all over the building. 

A particular chilly breeze blew through her braided hair. It hit something warm behind her, blowing back in a rather heated blow. 

She narrowed her eyes. The presence inched further out of the darkness into the light. 

“You know, smart people stop making stupid decisions after they get arrested,” he said.

Eliza groaned. “Oh, my god!”

She turned around to face the shadow of a man. His red eyes poked out. He kept his distance, half of his face still lulled in darkness. The color stood out, moonlight reflecting off the leather. Though the rest of him stayed in the safety of the night, barely breathing where he stood. 

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“Neither should you,” she said. “But oh well, here we are.”

“This is dangerous,” Daredevil told her. “What if you go to jail this time? You think that’s gonna help anyone?” 

“I could’ve gone to jail the last time, but I didn’t. I know some pretty good lawyers, you know.”

“What if this time, there’s no one to save you? What then, huh?”

“Then I die.” Eliza shrugged. “I’m more than willing to suffer the consequences for my actions.”

“You shouldn’t put yourself in danger every chance you get. When something bad happens and there’s no one there to save you, what then? You’re not a human sacrifice. It’s reckless.”

“Lucky for me that I don’t need saving. Why are you here, anyway?” she asked then. “Are you stalking me? Because I’m pretty damn sure I never told you where I was gonna go.”

“Yeah, I followed you.” His words sent a shiver down her spine. “I wanted to make sure you don’t get yourself killed,” he said. 

Eliza rolled her eyes. “How kind of you.”

He took a moment to step forward. He glistened in the moonlight. 

“What are you planning to do?”

“You expect me to tell you?” she said. “I barely know you.”

“I think we both have a common goal.”

“And what’s that, Daredevil ?” she stretched his name teasingly. 

“Hydra,” he stated. 

Eliza held her breath. Several alarms went off in her head. One word should not hold so much power over one individual. She gave up a long time ago. She helped the Avengers take Hydra apart, still hoping for answers until she decided, one day, that burning herself to the ground was not worth it. She gave up until she didn’t until the name resurfaced years later and she had to face them once again, head on, but this time she was alone. 

She only remembered what she did, and the people she killed. She remembered the feeling of submitting to the will of a single person. She remembered the tunnel vision, the need to obey. She remembered the loss of control and the surge of power. She remembered the helplessness, the training, the how-to-kill, and the children that kept disappearing until she graduated one day. She remembered the screams, the tears, and the mutilated stench of lost souls in the atmosphere.

She had every reason to be afraid of that one word. 

She bawled her fists at the side. “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” she warned. “If you know what’s good for you, you stop right there. You don’t take another step.”

“I think I know now,” Daredevil said. She took a step back at his determination.

He couldn’t possibly believe that. She refused to let him believe it because he didn’t know. No one would ever truly know what it meant to deal with Hydra, not until they ended up in their clutches and suffered the consequences. Only then they would realize the true extent. She believed that to be true deep in her heart. Files didn’t even begin to cover the monstrosity that was the organization that bore the Winter Soldier, the Scarlet Witch, and the Red Demon. They bore monsters made to serve them, but neither of them stayed because the horrors weren’t worth it. 

“You could’ve told me you were an Avenger the second we met, yet you decided not to. That says a lot about who you are. I may not be fluent in Russian, but I heard what that guy said yesterday. I’ve been breaking my head over it. If something like this is happening in my city, I have to do something about it.”

“You need to stop,” she said again. “Before it’s too late, you have to take off that mask and return to whatever life you have. You have to never look back because you’ve got no idea what you’ll face if you don’t.”

“Then tell me. Tell me about Hydra.”

“No!”

“Why? Because I’m Daredevil?”

“No, because you’re an idiot and I don’t like you. You come here, expecting it to be so easy to fix something you don’t even know. You don’t understand the magnitude of the situation. This is an ancient organization that somehow manages to come back at the most inconvenient times.” Eliza hated the way her voice rose, high-pitched and afraid, nothing like the strong woman she was taught to be. 

“You’re just a man in a mask going out at night to fight crime on the streets,” she said, steadier. “You may have defeated Wilson Fisk, but this is bigger than him. This is bigger than muggers or- or human traffickers on the docks. This is bigger than anything you faced before, but you think you can handle it because defeating Fisk somehow gave you a boost. So just because it’s happening here in Hell’s Kitchen, it’s your responsibility? Well, fuck you! You’re not special and you don’t get to claim something you know so little about. If you want to get yourself killed, fine, but let me do my job.”

Daredevil licked his lips. “You’re right,” he sounded eerily calm. “I don’t know shit about Hydra. I don’t know who they are or what they do. Everything I’ve done, I did on my own. I defeated Fisk on my own. If that makes me a bit eager, I’m sorry, but take a look around!” he said. “I’m here, aren’t I? No one else is. Tony Stark doesn’t believe a word you say. No one else wants to help you. Your friends are international fugitives. No one gets it. I know, I’ve been there. I know what it’s like to be alone.”

“Because you’re an annoying asshole and no one likes you,” she retorted.  

“Okay,” he chuckled. “I’m trying to help here. Would you just let me do that?” 

“Too bad. I don’t have any intention of stopping. If I want someone to mansplain my life to me, I’ll go to Stark.”

“You’re alone,” he said sharply, “and you will continue to be alone if you don’t open your eyes and see that I’m the only one willing to help. See it as a professional courtesy, but I think we work well. You might disagree, but I don’t care. I’m not trying to make friends.”

Tears stung her eyes. “I believe you,” Eliza admitted. 

He nodded. “Thank you.”

“I still think you’re annoying.” 

“Yeah, you too.”

“Ouch.”

He reached out a gloved hand. “Let’s try this again,” he said. “I’m Daredevil.”

Eliza eyed him. He seemed genuine - she must’ve badly misjudged him. She used to believe he was simply just a huge ego dressed as the devil, walking around with a stick in his ass. The man before her was more like a hero. To many, Daredevil was nothing but. He protected the people of Hell’s Kitchen the way the Avengers used to protect the world, the way Peter Park protected Brooklyn, and the way Eliza used to protect those she cared about.

Hesitantly, she wrapped her fingers around his. “They used to call me the Red Angel,” she said and shook his hand. “You can call me Angel though.”

“Nice to meet you, Angel,” he said. 

“For the record,” - her hand still held onto his - “This is all the physical contact I’ll allow.”

“That’s fine with me,” and he retracted his hand. 

She shivered. 

“I’m not asking you to be my friend,” he told her. “All I’m asking is for you to trust me. I became Daredevil to protect this city. Who am I if I don't try? This city needs me, it needs the mask. I can’t let an ancient Nazi organization destroy what’s left. Look at me and tell me I’m lying,” he said. “I know you have powers. You can feel it.”

She couldn’t. People who lie don’t go to such lengths. Liars had different specs on their souls. Sometimes it was easier, something harder, but through the wall around his heart, she could tell he wasn’t the type of man to lie. 

“That’s not quite how this works,” she said. 

“Does it matter?”

“I don’t know. It’s a part of me. I can’t exactly ignore it. But I also can’t explain them. It’s complicated.” 

“Are your powers a danger to society?”

Eliza wondered about his line of questioning. It implied that if her powers had been a danger to society, he would’ve considered her one as well. She figured being hurt over something as stupid as relying on the opinion of a total (totally handsome) stranger in a mask and a Halloween costume wasn’t worth it. 

“I don’t think so,” she answered hesitantly. “They’ve never posed an issue before.” 

Back then, she hadn’t been able to control their use. She was in charge of her destiny now – her powers only posed an issue if she wanted them to. Although the extent was unclear, she managed them quite well for someone who wasn’t even sure what she was controlling. 

“Then it doesn’t matter,” he said. “You’re not hurting anyone. That’s all that matters to me.” 

She ran a hand over her face. The words danced tango in her brain. “Fuck!” she exhaled. 

“I’ve been questioning my take on morality ever since I met you. The meaning of ‘humanity’ has twisted a little. I’ve been in a constant state of confusion since last night. About you, about your powers and the men we took out.” The confession was almost vulnerable. “Your powers terrify me, yes, but you’re not the only one who can do things people don’t understand. I know it, I’ve been where you are.”

“No, you haven’t,” she said, straining hard not to cry. Her throat closed up. She swallowed nothing but dry air. 

“I don’t know what these people did to you, but I know heartbeats better than most. I can hear yours loud and clear. I can hear that you’re angry. I can hear that you’re scared. I can hear a lot of things. Sight is… overrated.”

Eliza shook her head. She tried not to look at him, afraid he might see her cry and realize she wasn’t the invincible hero she made herself out to be. 

“Why are you telling me all this?” she asked. 

Daredevil struggled to find the right words. “Because,” he said, “I- I see myself in you. I may be the devil, but even the devil was an Angel once. And now that I’ve met you, I think I finally understand what it means to do something that matters not only to this city but the world.”

“So you’re chasing bigger fish for publicity?”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it.”

“Yeah,” she sighed in defeat. “I know.” 

“So let’s end this, Angel. Let’s end this together. Protect this city. Get them out as fast as we can so we can move on.”

There was no denying it, the man knew his way around words. But god, did she want to scratch his eyes out. 

Eliza pressed her palms into her sockets. The way her head was running laps drilled a nasty ache into her skull. 

“Human experiments,” she gave in. “That’s what they do. They used to make super soldiers like Steve Rogers, Captain America, but they’ve upped their game,” she said. “People think it started shortly after the attack on New York, but it didn’t. It all dates back to about twenty years ago, give or take. If these men we took out were Hydra Agents, then they were looking for Laura Pfeiffer’s father for a reason.”

“He’s a scientist,” Daredevil stated. 

“How do you-”

“I can hear him inside the building.”

“I don’t even want to know,” she said. 

“As I said, you’re not the only one with secrets.”

Eliza scoffed. Her lip quivered slightly with the sharp sound. It eased up at the end, resembling a chuckle, almost. She dropped her shoulders. Of what use were her defenses if she knew damn well that putting them up again was bound to end in disaster. 

“Maybe you’re right.” She was genuine this time. “I just hope your secrets aren’t as dark as mine.” She smirked at him. He didn’t return the gesture. His jaw only clenched.

“They’re secrets,” he said, voice distant. “Secrets you’ll never find out, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

“Hey,” - she raised her hands next to her head - “I’m the last person you have to worry about. My life is built on secrets.”

He sucked his bottom lip between his teeth, licking it and leaving behind a wet trail that didn’t go unnoticed in the light that was cast over him. 

“When this is over, we’re over,” she said. “This is simply what I like to call a situation-ship. We solve this, we part ways.”

To be honest, Eliza was more than willing to get this over with and pretend it never happened. She missed her friends, and her family; she missed the Avengers. Teaming up with Daredevil has been the last thing she’d seen herself doing before she caught wind of the kidnapping. He’d been the last person on her mind. By doing this though, she was no better than a vigilante. In fact, she was nothing. She was in the gray zone while Daredevil walked the tightrope between right and wrong. 

The moment of contemplation lasted longer than expected. “Fine,” he finally said. “We do this, we’re done.”

“Great.”

“Yeah, great.” He crouched, feet dangerously close to the ledge. One push and he would’ve been done for. “Do you think these guys want to kill him?” he asked her. He didn’t even have the courtesy to look at her. 

Eliza chose to kneel on the other side, face-to-face with the man in the mask. She eyed him, but his face was well turned to the side. She could only make out his sharp jawline and the beard that covered the lower part of his face. Whatever felt familiar about him wasn’t part of his face and she didn’t want to reach out and touch him like a crazy person just to see what her head was on about. 

She decided to figure it out along the way. Not that it mattered who hid behind that mask, the thought of knowing the person just bothered her too much to ignore the urge to investigate. 

She blew raspberries at his question. “Fuck me if I know,” she said. 

“Maybe later,” he smirked. He always found the smallest incision site and stabbed his words right in. 

“I hate you,” Eliza said without missing a beat. “This isn’t a joke.”

“It’s not.”

Her hands shook repeatedly in the long sleeves of her hoodie to concentrate on anything but the need to cry. 

He hung his head low. “I’m sorry, Angel.”

“I just… you believe me,” she softened. The call of her name somehow eased her nerves. “You believe me and now you’re even nice to me. It would be so much easier if you were the same asshole I met yesterday.”

He laughed. 

“My point is, you don’t know what you’re believing in. What are you gonna do if they start shooting, hm?”

“Protect you,” he stated simply. 

“Why?” she asked.

“Because it’s you they want, not me.”

“They want me alive,” Eliza argued. “You’re dead weight.”

Daredevil chuckled. “I’d like to see them try.”

“You’re insane.”

“I know.”

She glanced at him. He carried a smile, not a smirk anymore. The situation wore thin on her. 

She laughed in disbelief. “This is so fucked up!” Someone had to say it.

He cocked his head. The question was silent, but she understood it. 

“I found the name Pfeifer in the Hydra files released in 2014. He worked for them before. “

“So you have proof?” he asked. No, he stated it. 

“I wanted to give up after Tony bailed me out, but I didn’t. Now I found this and somehow it’s still not enough.”

“Why? What else do you need?”

“Honestly?” He nodded. “No idea,” she said. 

“You were right,” he told her. 

“I was fucking right,” she agreed.

“And that’s not enough?”

“It’ll never be enough.”

He must’ve listened to her heartbeat change. She felt it up to her throat, suffocating her. She laughed, but it was a crazy laugh, high-pitched and whiny. The first tear slipped. 

“The terrifying part is,” - she inhaled shakily - “Even if we do this together, we don’t stand a chance. The risk of dying is greater than that of winning. I’m willing to take it, but are you? Are you really?”

“I am,” he said. The answer came so promptly, that she doubted he considered his options. “I’d die for this city. I almost did countless times and I don’t regret a thing. So yeah, I’m ready.”

She shook her head. “Just, when things get hard, don’t turn around and stab me in the back, is all I’m asking. We may not be friends, but I take loyalty pretty seriously, even among strangers I happen to work with.”

“I won’t.”

“If you want to stab me, at least do it in the front.”

“I’m not gonna stab you, Angel. You’re not that annoying.”

Eliza laughed, unexpectedly, surprising even herself. It was a bad joke, terrible even. “Just saying,” she said. “I’ve worked with people before. A lot of them turned out to be backstabbers.”

“I’m not like other people, trust me,” he said.

“ Can I trust you, Daredevil?”

“I swear on my life,” he swore and suddenly he was so close she could feel his hot breath on her. “If I’m anything, it’s loyal.”

Eliza swallowed. She stared into his covered eyes. He was much taller than her and his hold was freakishly strong. Her eyes were blown wide as she listened to him speak. Even without touching him, she felt the intensity of his soul. One look, one touch and he had her in a chokehold. Her senses failed miserably to keep her focused. It seemed to be his gift, diverting the attention of others to anything but himself. He was so caged inside, even the slightest step forward would end you up burned. 

“You’re an Avenger-”

“I’m not an Avenger anymore,” she interrupted him. 

“Avenger or not, I choose to trust you. I need you to trust me, too.”

“I have trust issues.” She formed her lips into a thin line. 

Daredevil cocked his head. “Oh, really ?”

“Yeah. I have to make sure you don’t want to kill me first,” she said.

“Do you ever just listen to what you’re told?”

She contemplated. “No.”

“Right, okay. You know,” he said, “It’s really hard not to smash your head into the next best wall just to shut you up for once in your life, but I won’t do it. I’m not that kind of person.”

“Like I said, trust issues.”

Daredevil gave a long, frustrated sigh. “Do you have a plan?” 

“Oh, now you’re asking my opinion,” she scoffed. 

“Yeah.”

“Back door.” She gritted her teeth. “For you. Me, I’m gonna go through the front.”

“You think you can just walk in there-” he prompted.

“Yeah. I’m not the one with the, uh, devil’s mask.”

“You think the offensive approach is gonna get you any way other than jail?” She imagined him raising his eyebrows like the cocky bastard he was. “How do you plan on getting through that?” and he pointed at the crowd of police officers on the ground. 

Eliza overlooked the building. She memorized the plans she pulled from the server. Most of the entrances were covered by security, but there was always one that got overlooked in every company, every building. 

“The back door is the safest bet for you to get inside. There’s no security there,” she stated. “I’ll go in through the front. This-” she waved the plastic card into his face, “Is gonna get me through that.”

“What’s that?” he asked. 

She frowned. “It’s an ID.” Weird enough she had to explain it to him, considering the picture of her was pretty dominant on the front. 

Daredevil’s head twitched. “For the building?”

“Yeah. I made it myself. Do you like it?”

“How did you even-”

“It’s best if you don’t know.”

“Ah, you planned this,” he chuckled. “Of course.”

“I’m not gonna answer that without my lawyer present,” Eliza decided. 

Little did she know. 

“I guess it’s not legal then,” he said. 

“Nope, but it works,” she said. “Meet Doctor Olivia Shipp, Harvard graduate with a doctorate in biological engineering. She’s quite the firehouse.”

Daredevil lowered his head, sighing. “Great.”

“Yeah.” 

Eliza was beaming. The thrill reanimated her with newfound life. She loved it, she’d missed it. The adrenalin made her feel alive. For a moment, reality didn’t exist. It was just her against the world. 

She patted him on the back. “Let’s go be criminals.”

He wasn’t happy, but she was right - they didn’t have much of a choice. 

She discarded her hoodie to reveal the basic white shirt she wore underneath. She tucked at it until her cleavage was full out. The remaining fabric slid into her jeans, giving her a slightly more professional look. “See you on the other side?” she said. 

“Where exactly is that?” he asked. 

“The stairway. Fifth floor. Pfeiffer’s in room 22, research lab. I’ll join you on the fourth and we’ll take the rest together. There are some things I need to do first.”

“Okay,” he nodded. 

“Try not to get caught,” she said.

“You too.”

When she walked around the building, Daredevil was gone. He slipped into the dark alley unseen. 

She saw the police officer coming even before she reached the entrance. He reached an arm out to stop her, still a few inches of space between them. Eliza stepped back, surrendering herself. 

“I work here,” she told him.

One of his hands moved to the gun in his holster. “I need to see some ID,” he said. 

“Right.” she reached into her jeans pocket. “I’m sorry, I went for a smoke and I forgot my coat. Long hours tend to make my head all mushy.”

She tossed her hair to the side. The officer watched her, eyes focused on her now revealed cleavage, and his hold around the card she handed him loosened. She smiled, giggled, and tried to charm him - it was a foolproof plan, one of the oldest tricks in history. 

“What exactly is it that you do?” he asked. 

“Uh, I’m Doctor Olivia Shipp. I work on the third floor, neuro-robotics.”

He eyed the ID. “Really? You don’t look like it.”

“Well, last time I checked your job description said to protect and serve, so if you were so kind as to remove your eyes from my breasts and check my credentials like you are supposed to, so I can get back to developing the algorithm for the research of cancer in children, that would be really appreciated.”

His mouth dropped open. Somewhere on his jacket, it said that his name was Louis, though it wasn’t important enough to remember. He was merely a hurdle on her way inside and she mastered it perfectly. 

Louis blushed. He turned to the laptop, and ran the number on her card, swiping it through the sensor. The face ran through the building’s database. Her heart remained steady, though droplets of sweat began to form below the surface. Only when his hand around the gun eased and he offered her a kind smile, did she let out the breath she’d been holding?

“I’m sorry, doctor,” he said. “Go ahead.”

Eliza curtsied. “Thank you, officer,” she said. 

The front desk was unoccupied. The secretary appeared to be in the back, manning the coffee machine that seemed to have broken. 

She reached over the counter, aiming for the lab coat hung over one of the chairs. Of course, no one noticed. She pinned the ID on the front left pocket. The path of the least resistance was to fit in. She flowed into the crowd like a fish finding a strange herd, but since he doesn’t have anywhere else to go, he chooses to try and fit in with everyone, no matter what happens. 

The glasses found a home on her nose. While her vision failed every possible test, she was already wearing contacts when she put them on. They seemed real to the outside, but the second she put them on, the front turned into a holographic screen. 

“Alice?” she asked. 

“Hello, Eliza,” the automatic voice spoke into her ear. “How can I be of service today?”

“I’m looking for the control room.”

The plans appeared before her eyes. She resisted the urge to say, ‘Oh that is so cool!’. 

“It’s just down the hall,” Alice stated. “Right next to the stairway entrance.”

Eliza kept her head lowered as she walked the path that was revealed to her. 

“What exactly is it that you need?”

She peaked around the corner and over both shoulders before she rattled the doorknob to find it unlocked, and slipped in through the smallest crack possible. The door closed without another sound. Her heart remained still.

The control room was filled with all kinds of electronic devices. Screens showed the footage of all security cameras. The power supply was right next to her. 

“I, uh, need you to gain control over the cameras and security system and upload it to my device,” Eliza said to the voice in her glasses. “Can you do that?” She connected her phone to the server.

“Already on it,” Alice answered. “Pulling the data now.”

“Great, thanks.”

“What exactly are you planning, Eliza?”

“Don’t worry about that, Alice.” She took another careful look around. Her eyes brushed the security footage, catching a glimpse of room 22 on the fifth floor. The police presence was heavier around Robert Pfeiffer’s lab, just like she predicted. “I’ve got it all under control,” she said.

Eenie, mini, moe …

In a last-minute haze, she pressed the red button on the circuit board for the fourth floor. The security feed began to flicker as the lights seemingly blew out. Through the speakers, she could faintly make out the deafening beeping of the system, warning the occupants of the labs on the floor that there had been a breach and it was time to evacuate. 

It was the biohazard alarm. Remote control allowed whoever was in charge of security at the time to hit the button in case the people on the floor weren’t able to do so themselves. 

“Alice, would you mind telling these guys on the fourth floor that there’s been a minor explosion?” 

Eliza watched as the scientists began to scramble in panic. 

“Nothing to worry about,” she added. “Just enough to make them squirm. Maybe even open one of the electronic trays in an empty lab.”

“You got it, boss,” the automatic voice replied. 

The security guards appeared less worried once the radio on their shoulders gave off a detailed explanation. They evacuated the area calmly, using the elevator as an escape. There was no reported fire, only some exposure to the chemicals that had been released into the air. Masks covered their faces - it was standard procedure, something that happened every other day. Even with the stakes so high around scientist Robert Pfeiffer, the alarm gave no apparent reason to cause panic. A simple mishap in one of the labs. Eliza realized the second she stepped into the room that protocol was going to be her ticket out. No one was as orderly as the people in a scientific lab. 

She smirked at her handiwork. “Much better.”

At this point, she wouldn’t have been surprised if someone caught up to her. Though when she snuck her way out of the control room, the only souls in sight were those appearing in the lobby as the evacuation of the fourth floor came to an end. She had about five minutes until a team would come up to check on the supposed chemical leak. 

Eliza used the emergency stairway to climb up to the fourth floor. Her heart almost dropped when a pair came strutting down the stairs. Somehow they didn’t see her. They were too caught up in their heated conversation to pay attention to the nerd in glasses who instantly turned her back to them. 

She exhaled. You’re less likely to be sought out if you at least try to fit in, no matter how out of place you might look. Make an effort and no one will give a second thought to your presence. Human perception is weird like that. 

With no one around, she could easily pass through the hallway of the fourth floor to the official stairway on the other end. Five minutes. That was all she needed. When she came through, her lungs opened to release the pent-up oxygen. The stairway was much colder than the general temperature in the building. She slid the glasses back into her pocket, freeing herself from the lab coat that wasn’t even hers. It choked her.

“Hey,” the hoarse voice sounded from somewhere above. 

There he sat, like a bat, sitting on the railing. 

“Hey,” she said. “What you doin’ there?”

“Waiting for you.” 

Daredevil took the stairs down to her level. She appreciated that he didn’t jump to flaunt his perfect physique. 

“Did everything work out?” he asked her then. 

Eliza nodded. “Like a charm. We should hurry though before anyone catches wind of the fact that I just meddled with their security system.”

“I take it the alarm was your doing then?”

“What, did you think this had anything to do with luck?” she teased. 

“Yeah, now that you said it sounds stupid.”

She opened her arms to the stairs leading up. “After you,” she said. 

He scoffed. “Of course.”

Everything she did was based purely on strategy. Her choices were nothing but calculated decisions. There was something so perfectly trained about her. He’d been in the game for a long time before she came along; Eliza was younger, and less experienced, yet she somehow held the reins tighter than he ever could. She was in complete control. She could make the world spin around her just like that, with the snap of her fingers. 

He hadn’t realized how smart she truly was. The reckless girl from the night before somehow proved she was more than that. A rebel with a cause. She found the plot holes and plastered them close. He had dangerously underestimated her. 

Daredevil was fast on his feet. He took two stairs at a time, his boots barely made a sound. Eliza blinked once and already saw his figure disappear up the stairwell. Instead of picking up the speed though, she halted. Her eyes got caught up on the object (in hindsight, her wording had been slightly offensive) in front of her. 

“Are you staring at my ass right now?” the low voice rumbled from above. 

“What?” she said. “Of course not.”

“You’re lying,” he said. 

“Well, in my defense, you have a nice ass.”

His mouth contorted. “ What ?”

Eliza smiled awkwardly. “What can I say, God blessed you,” she tried to talk herself out of it, but the horse she was on shamelessly rode deeper into the mess. 

Daredevil stared blankly ahead at her and said, without wasting another facial expression, “You have issues.”

“Yeah, tell me about it,” she said.

They reached the fifth floor. His hand shot out to stop her, flat against her no longer concealed chest. Underneath his sensitive fingers, her heart jumped, louder and harder than he had ever felt a heart jump.

He tilted his head at just the right angle. The sound traveled through his eardrums into his brain where he began to decipher the meaning behind the conclusion of his senses. 

“Six men,” he stated then. “Two cops are guarding the door to the lab. Three at the entrance points. Two scientists working down the hall but they’re wearing headphones.”

“Alright, let’s give them something to worry about.”

She pulled her phone out. The control panel to the system that the entire building ran on was right there on the screen. One press of the right button and she could make it all shut down. 

“I’d focus if I were you,” she told him. “Things are gonna get pretty dark.”

“Oh, I can deal with dark.” The smirk on his face spoke a language she wasn’t fluent in. 

Eliza flicked the switch. The neon lights crackled loudly at the sudden capitulation of the fuses that used to keep them burning. They blew out, one by one until the entire floor was covered in darkness. 

Daredevil lifted his chin. Light bulbs, especially neon lighting, emitted a sizzling sound. The sound went unnoticed by normal ears. Except his ears weren’t normal, they weren’t even ordinary. His senses were as sensitive as the small layer of ice on a lake in early winter. Even the smallest disturbance could make it crack. The sudden halt of the annoying abundance of sound coming from the ceiling sent his mind straight into relief. One last thing to tune out, one last thing to cause him a headache. His ears no longer struggled to make out the difference between a light bulb and crickets. 

The door next to them burst open. She pushed him against the wall. In the darkness, she could barely make out the figure, but the man seemed to pick up on their presence way faster. His lips parted, already prepared to let out the threaded sound of a warning. 

Eliza balled her fist across his face. His body went down and with it, he choked on the words he wanted to say. 

She glanced at her partner. “There’s more where that came from.”

“Then we better get to it,” he said. 

Daredevil opened the door. Without night vision, even the guards were blind. Their reaction time was off, but they weren’t the only ones who needed time to get adjusted to the new circumstances. 

“This is so much harder than I thought,” Eliza whispered. 

“You were the one who said we needed to focus.” He landed the punch without once turning his head. “So, focus .”

One of the officers reached for his gun. He pulled the baton from his holster and hit him over the head. The gun fell into his hand. He unloaded it and slid it across the floor where he hoped it would stay until they were done. The cop didn’t appear to be getting up anytime soon. 

Eliza used the moment of distraction to unlock room 21, the neighboring room to her target. The lights in the lab were still on. She quietly unlocked the door that connected both rooms, offering a perfect pathway. 

Robert Pfeiffer stood at the laboratory table in all his glory. Differently colored vials lined up before him. He was absentmindedly typing away on his laptop, documenting his process. A collection of different drawings and lab reports piled over each other in a methodically sorted mess. 

He realized her presence in the room before she got the chance to map out his workplace to the fullest extent. He turned around with a startled sound, reaching for a weapon. “Who are you?” he asked. The circles under his eyes suggested that he hadn’t slept in more than twenty-four hours. 

She wondered if it was normal to keep working after one’s daughter got kidnapped the previous day. His life was threatened multiple times, some might say one would want to stay with their family after an event like that. Robert Pfeiffer though was something else. He chose the police to guard his room while he kept working. The risk of losing his life posed as less important than the research in his hands.

Eliza stepped further into the dim light of the desk lamp, revealing her face to the man. “I’m not here to hurt you,” she said. 

He kept pointing the object at her. “Oh yeah?” he challenged. “So you just broke in for no reason?”

“That’s not what I said. Hey, can you put the test tube down? It’s kind of ridiculous.”

He shrugged. “I can stab you with it, so technically, it’s a good weapon.”

“Please, that thing’s not gonna hurt me.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m not here to discuss chemistry supplies,” she said. 

Robert eyed her face. He searched for signs of familiarity, but the flabbergasted look on his face told her he couldn’t find any signs of origin. To him, she was simply a woman who broke into his workplace. She was a threat. 

“Why are you here?” he asked. 

“Seems like we have a friend in common.” Eliza took another step forward. “I’m talking about Hydra,” she shot the words over to him. 

He flared his nostrils. His hand twitched around the test tube. 

“Don’t,” she warned, but he had already grabbed his bag. 

“Don’t.” Robert stopped in defeat as Daredevil appeared in the doorway. His gloved arm stretched across the frame. 

He turned around, eyes wide and his face a sudden shade of white. He looked less like he’d seen a ghost and more like he was the ghost. 

Eliza lifted her hands in surrender. She saw the look in his eyes, the determination to end his life before falling back into the clutches of Hydra. The sweat on his forehead was a byproduct of his prominent fear. She could not only see the green around his head, but she could smell it. She could sense the fear with every ounce of her being. His fear settled into all five senses she possessed. He wasn’t pretending; Robert Pfeiffer was serious in his fear and honest to God, he was willing to die for it. 

“I’m not Hydra,” she chose a kinder tone of voice. She wanted the green to go away. She wanted to stop seeing the horror reflected in his eyes. “We saved your daughter yesterday,” she said. 

Slowly, it dawned on him. “That was you?” he asked. 

“Yes.”

“What do you want from me then? My gratitude? Because you have it. You have all of it.”

He just wanted to go home to his daughter. He had been so relieved to see her alive the night before, but he had also never been more scared for something to haunt him than that night. He feared for the life of his family, the life he built for them. He didn’t want to lose what he loved more than anything in the world. Only people with good in their hearts can love so deeply the way Robert loved his family. 

“That’s the thing,” she said sadly, “I want your gratitude to mean something, I do, but it doesn’t. Your gratitude means nothing to me, Robert.”

“What else do you want?” his voice quivered from the tears that threatened to overfill the glass jar. 

“I know you used to work for Hydra. I thought the story was long over, but it’s not. We’re far from it being over. Hydra tried to kill your daughter.”

He turned his head away. His whimper would haunt her forever. The pain was too much. His soul would not be able to take it. The torture he’d experienced weakened him. Years of suffering and yet it was worth nothing in the end. 

“The only common denominator here is you,” she said. “You were one of Hydra’s best scientists. I found your name in the files released in 2014. I know what you did. I know you were in Sokovia, maybe not the year it fell but certainly a long time before that. I need you to tell me what happened.”

“No.”

“That wasn’t a question, Robert. I am telling you. I need to know or else this is gonna end ugly. Now, I’m not a murderer, but I won’t hesitate to hurt you. You’re already in pain, why make it worse?”

“I made mistakes,” he admitted. “But that’s not me anymore. Please, I don’t have anything to do with them. I told them, it’s over. I moved on.”

“I don’t believe you. People don’t just move on.”

Even seven years later, Eliza still hadn’t moved on. No one got to turn their back on Hydra without consequences. They kept their people close and if they even as much as dared to back out, they were more than willing to end them. It was a fight you were bound to lose. 

Robert walked up to her with determined steps. Daredevil pushed himself off the doorframe and followed him, ready to twist his shoulder and send him into space. She made a small motion with her hand. 

“You have to believe me,” he begged and he stopped because even he could tell there was no arguing with the masked vigilante when it came to personal space. 

Eliza tilted her head. “Why?” she asked him. “Tell me, why should I believe anything you say? You’re Hydra. You were made to lie.”

“Please! I’m grateful for what you did, but you can’t be here. I can’t talk to you. It’s not safe.”

“That’s not your decision to make.”

“You don’t understand.” He looked between her and Daredevil, his eyes furrowed and his lips formed into the thinnest line any lips could form. “I can’t talk about them. This part of my life is over. I left it behind. There’s nothing for me to say. You need to trust me on this because there’s nothing more I can give you. Just go,” he said. “Please.”

She pulled the sleeves of her shirt up. The light barely fell on her, but the red ink on the inside of her arm couldn’t be missed. The closer he looked, the more he realized he wasn’t staring at a tattoo but a tiny brand mark just below her biceps. 

“Project Chaos,” she stated. 

The fabric of her shirt slid even further up, her torso now on full display. Scars littered the once smooth skin. He looked closer, drawn to it, unable to look away. She knew it was gruesome, she knew her skin looked more like a battlefield than an actual human body, but this was her. She couldn’t hide what was part of her. And her skin told stories she hardly ever told anyone. 

It was a story Robert Pfeiffer knew how to read. A long time ago, he had only been fluent in the language of violence. 

“Oh, God!” Robert dropped his bag. He tangled his hands in his graying hair. He barely caught himself on the back of his office chair. 

Eliza pulled the shirt back down.  “You wanna talk now?” she asked. 

“How did you survive?” he breathed. “How’s that possible? Project Chaos… they told me it failed. Most of the children died in that room.”

“Eh, I’m pretty much alive.”

His hand remained tangled in his hair. He stared at her as if she was a zombie, someone risen from the dead, or maybe even a necromancer. She cheated death, as it seemed, and that freaked him out. Who wouldn’t be shocked or maybe even scared if someone believed to be dead was suddenly standing in front of them?

“This is-” he took a deep breath, and composed himself. Then, without warning, he laughed. He opened his mouth and the freakiest laugh left his vocal cords. It was the laugh of revelation. “This is incredible,” he said. 

Eliza clenched her jaw. She bit into the soft tissue inside her cheeks, drawing blood. The pinch of pain kept her grounded. His laugh scratched something inside of her, but that scratch wasn’t comfortable or relieving. That scratch slid over an already open wound and made it burn terribly, and then it suddenly began to itch and she wanted to burn herself to make it stop. Something like that. 

“Hydra wants you,” she said. “Why?”

He shook his head. “I can’t believe this.”

“Pick up your jaw and answer me!”

At her harsh tone, he flinched back. She inhaled, then exhaled again. The anger pumped through her veins, a once so natural state. She tried to breathe it out as she taught herself, but the feeling remained stern in her bones. 

Robert wildly searched around the table. Eliza imagined she exchanged a look with Daredevil, although it was hard to tell underneath the mask. She nodded for him to come closer. He tilted his head again. She waved her hand more strongly. This time, he locked the door, following her silent demand to inch closer to the table. 

“Here,” Robert said shakily. He handed her a piece of paper. 

“What is it?” Daredevil asked. 

Eliza skimmed over the Russian letters. She tried to make sense of it. The last time she read in Russian was a long time ago. It didn’t take a genius though to decipher what was written. 

“It’s a letter,” she told him. How could he have known? The language was as much of a stranger to him as the number of code words implemented. 

“I got it after the Avengers destroyed Sokovia. No name, no address, it just magically landed on my doorstep.”

“I’m a bit rusty on Hydra code these days.” She traced her fingers over the text. “But this pretty much says that they’re asking for your help. With- I don’t know the last word.”

“After von Strucker created the, uh, Maximoff twins-”

Eliza stopped him. She turned to Daredevil. “Pietro Maximoff was this really fast guy,” she needed to explain. “And Wanda does telekinesis, mind control, all that stuff.”

He nodded, “Thank you.”

“Hydra realized they were onto something with those experiments,” Robert continued. “With Loki’s scepter, there was little they couldn’t do, but that’s gone now too. They had to find another way and they did, apparently, or else they wouldn’t have told me they were continuing their experiments.”

He pulled the box from his bag. 

“I recreated the super soldier serum for them. With a few modifications,” - he opened the lid slowly, careful not to disturb the glass - “They said they wouldn’t bother me anymore if I told no one about it, but they came back and asked me to help make more of it and I just… I said I don’t want to do this shit anymore. I’m happy with this life. I saw what Project Chaos did, the sacrifices that were made…”

Something hot shot through her veins at the view of the see-through liquid inside the small vials that looked like drugs that could be found at the hospital. Eliza couldn’t control it, not this time. The heat went straight to her head, pushing into the middle of her forehead. Her veins seemed to boil. 

Robert cried out. Her hand reached around his neck, tightly wrapped around it, and the fire began to form into a ball in the palm of her hand. She tossed him against the wall, feet dangling just above the ground. He stared into the glowing red of her irises.

“You knew and you didn’t do anything,” she said. 

He swallowed hard. “I didn’t want to be associated with it. Oh, God.” 

She tightened her fingers around his throat. 

“And they just let you?” she scoffed. “Hydra doesn’t let you just leave.”

“I made the serum, okay? They haven’t contacted  me for years so I decided to move on.” The first tear fell on her. “Please don’t kill me! Please .”

“Angel,” Daredevil tried behind her. He didn’t dare touch her, he merely stood behind her, having her back, and maybe that was why she listened to him even though the anger threatened to eat her conscience alive.

“I’m not gonna kill you,” she said eventually, loosening her hold and letting him find his footing back on the floor. “I won’t give you the satisfaction.”

“Oh, thank God!” He went weak in the knees. 

The gloved hand slowly slid up her back. “Okay?” Daredevil asked. 

She swallowed. The power ball in her hands subsided. “Okay,” she said, although hesitantly. 

Just when Robert thought he was safe, he found his arm twisted. This time though, it wasn’t Eliza who had it out for him. Daredevil pushed the man down on the table. He cried out, but he only pushed harder. 

“What does Hydra want?” he asked, followed by a guttural growl in his ear. “I can tell when you’re lying and you just lied to the woman who almost went to jail for saving your daughter. She risked her safety in coming here. You just lied to her and you lied to me after you told us that you were done. So help us or I swear to God, I’ll make sure your shoulder never pops back in.”

“What does the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen have to do with this?” Robert asked. 

Eliza bowed down to meet his eyes. “He’s here with me,” she said. 

“You’re a team?”

“Yes,” Daredevil answered instantly. 

“It’s complicated,” she said. “But essentially, yeah we are.”

“What does Hydra want?” He was relentless. The man’s arm turned numb.

“I don’t know,” Robert said, panting. “I don’t know, please! Please, just stop hurting me!”

“He’s lying.”

Eliza cocked her head. “What are you not telling us?” she asked. “They sent you the letter, you declined, they took your daughter. The letter says nothing about why they want your help but somehow you know. Now, we can do this the easy or the hard way - you don’t want to know what the latter looks like.”

He struggled against the hold the vigilante had on him. 

“May I remind you,” - her lips turned into a twisted smile - “I wasn’t just their prisoner, Hydra trained me. And you know what Hydra Agents do to people that piss them off, don't you?”

Robert squeezed his eyes shut. He contemplated, regret washing over him. The words lay hesitant on the tip of his tongue. The bone of his shoulder gave a loud crack. It popped out, giving more space to twist in. Daredevil pushed his glove into his mouth to muffle his screams. 

“Alright!” he yelled, muffled through the leather. “Alright, I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you!”

Eliza nodded at her partner. He gave a displeased huff. With skilled fingers, he twisted the arm forward, circling the limb, and rolled the disk back in place. 

“ Shit !”

“Talk,” she demanded. 

Robert turned with his back to the table. “If I tell you, do you promise to keep my family safe?” he asked. 

“I promised your daughter already. I won’t give up.”

“Alright.”

He took the black box back into his hands. “They asked me to replicate it,” he told them. “They came to my house at night, broke in, threatened me that they’d hurt my family if I didn’t comply.”

“So you did what they asked of you?” Daredevil questioned. He wasn’t aware of the blame in his tone.

“I told them I’d try, but I had no intention of actually giving it to them. That’s… that’s why I’m here instead of locking myself at home.”

Eliza counted six vials. 

“They wanted it stronger,” Robert said. “Stronger than the Winter Soldier program. I don’t know what exactly their agenda is, but it’s possible they’re trying to build an army of super soldiers.” He eyed her. “ Enhanced super soldiers.”

She traced the glass with her fingers. “Is that all of it?” she asked. 

“Yeah, I didn’t make more. That's all that’s left.”

“You’re the only one who knows the formula?”

“Yeah, to this one. The one Mueller made is outdated. They told me it’s only half as effective. He was present for Project Chaos. It’s his serum that made you.”

“I know that, I was there too.”

“I’m sorry for what we did,” for the first time that night, his words were genuine. A truthful apology, yet she couldn’t buy her childhood back with these words. It was just pity, nothing more, and pity just wasn’t an acceptable currency. 

Eliza grabbed one of the vials and played with it. To Hydra, the serum was worth more than money. She understood why they wanted the formula. There were only a handful of people to recreate it. Mueller was in jail, Pfeiffer was barely hanging on and that was just about it. All of their actions suddenly made even more sense. They were scared of failing again. They took a pretty big hit. 

“I’m the only one that can make it stronger,” Robert stated. “If I tell them I don’t have it, they’re gonna kill me. If I don’t tell them, they’re gonna kill me anyway. I’m trying to find a middle ground until I’ve found a way to get me and my family out of the country.”

“Enhanced,” Daredevil repeated the words. “What does that mean?”

He frowned. “You don’t know?”

“He’s new to this,” Eliza said. 

“Enhanced like her,” Robert pointed. “Enhanced like Wanda Maximoff. Inhuman powers after human experimentation.”

A whole new world opened up to him. The concept was too far away to grasp. His senses were enhanced too, but they only turned out this way due to chemicals, not forced through experiments a normal human being couldn’t comprehend. It was something he’d never fathomed true. The world had always been black and white, good and evil, hero and villain – whatever he got himself into was a pile of shit, one he couldn’t claw his way out of. 

The conversation was still unfolding. His thoughts had been a cork in his ears, getting popped by Robert’s distinctive accent. 

“The children taken for Project Chaos were already… enhanced,” he explained. 

“You mean, born with it?” Daredevil asked. 

“I wouldn’t call it that. They were donated to the cause, some of them, others…” he turned his head to her, “were taken from their families, their parents killed on site.”

“That’s why I was the only one who survived,” Eliza said, her voice barely above a whisper then. “The other children were too weak, they died during the experiments.“

“Project Chaos was the worst idea Hydra ever had. They realized it was of no use and put a stop to it, or so I thought. Now that you’re standing in front of me, I doubt they ever stopped.”

“The files we found in Sokovia only contained death certificates. I searched through them in hopes of finding myself, but I didn’t. They labeled it as failed, but the training I received was extensive. It didn’t fail.”

Robert chuckled. “Von Strucker believed he created a miracle with the twins,” he said, “not knowing Hydra’s best-kept secret was the first ever miracle they achieved a decade ago. What I wonder is just, how did you survive?”

Eliza licked her lips. She thought back to the day she woke up in the sterile room at SHIELD, Natasha by her side, after interfering with one of her missions. One hit on the head and everything changed. 

“Luck,” she said. “I just got lucky.”

Daredevil scratched the stubble on his cheek before he spoke again. “How do we find them?” he asked.

Robert chuckled again. “You don’t.”

“How do we get ahead of this?”

“You don’t.”

“Listen,” - he raised his hand to the color of his shirt - “I don’t have time for your bullshit. We need a place to start and you’re the only one who knows enough about Hydra to help us. Think about your daughter, Robert. You don’t want her blood on your hands.”

Robert lifted his hands in surrender. The mention of his daughter was enough to change the turmoil of his feelings. That was true parental love, even if their lives were twisted and cruel. He loved his daughter and he was willing to do anything to keep her safe. “They’re probably taking their subjects from human traffickers,” he said. 

“How do you know that?”

Robert scouted his desk for a piece of paper. “There’s a name.”

“What name?” Eliza asked.

He scribbled with shaky hands, almost screwing up the letters. “The Viper,” he read aloud. “I heard it when I still worked for them. He’s been around a couple of years. No one’s ever met him. After the Avenger busted all facilities, the trail went cold, but he may be still alive and operating. Human trafficking would fall right into his area of expertise.”

“The Viper?” Eliza cocked an eyebrow. “Seriously? What kind of name is that?”

“It’s an alias.”

“Thank you for telling me, I thought his parents just had an unhealthy obsession with snakes.”

Daredevil gave a disapproving grunt. The sarcasm. 

“Sorry.”

Robert pursed his lips. He handed the slip to her, his hold strong. She tried to pull at it, but he held it sternly between his rough fingers.

“He’s dangerous,” he warned. “I‘ve never met him but word is, he’s cruel. He doesn’t feel . He’s the man next to the big boss, his handyman.”

She pried his fingers apart. “Thanks for the warning,” she said, “but this isn’t my first rodeo.”

“You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. They’ll kill anyone who gets in their way. Think about what they’d do to you if they found you.“

“Only if I die.”

“That’s kinda what killing you means.”

“You don’t know me at all,” she said with a chuckle. “Get killed, walk it off. That’s how it goes.”

Robert rummaged through the piles of documents again. His hand aimed for an object in the middle of it, hidden beneath lab results and progress reports.

“Here,” he handed Eliza the small flash drive.

“What’s that?”

“What little info I have left on the serum. Get it far away from here. They can’t find it, ever. I was gonna burn it, but as long as they’re not on your tail already, you can get rid of it for me.”

“Thank you.”

The following moments passed by in slow-motion. Eliza reached for the flash drive. Next to her, Daredevil bowed his head as a foreign sound reached his ears. Through police sirens and loud voices, the steady clicking came from the opposite building. He listened to the steady heartbeat of the person. Their breath was soft, barely audible, hands calm. 

His jaw slacked in the wake of realization. It clicked again, but this time a blow of wind sent the projectile toward them. He could hear the way it broke the sound barrier and headed straight for the glass that enveloped the laboratory of room 22. Even feet away, the blow was deafening.

With a short exhale on his part, he did the most conscious thing – he wrapped Eliza in his arms and sent them both flying to the linoleum floor. The glass shattered loudly. Shards exploded in every possible direction, weaponized by the explosion. One crack was enough to break the whole window apart. The night air blew inside, sirens and screams sounding over the ringing in their ears. Glass crunched under the body weight. 

Eliza squealed. Her hands went over her head to shield herself from the weaponized glass. Her head was parked between his hand and his chest. Daredevil bore the full force of the sharp projectiles, some of them scratching at his face and drawing the smallest amount of blood. 

Another shot rang out. She flinched. Voices outside the building and on the floor grew in size. Flesh parted in a disgusting squishing sound. Like squeezing ketchup out of a bottle, the blood painted the white walls red. One bullet after another came raining down. 

Daredevil heard the person in the other building empty the full row of bullets from his rifle. He didn’t know what was louder, the squirting of blood, the cracking of bones, or the world breaking apart around them. The sirens busted his eardrums. Eliza’s heartbeat was so loud, that he felt it vibrating underneath him. Then there was the faint sound of choking, the smell of gunpowder and copper and hot metal in the air.

The heartbeat in the other building faded. Not once did the person’s breathing or pulse change.

His first instinct was to tilt his head down. Eliza kept her hands on her head, still pretty much in shock at the sudden change of plans. He softly placed a hand on her hair, the gloved hand rough against her sensitive skin. 

“You alright?” he asked.

She nodded. She couldn’t speak, her mind was blank and her heart was too fast to hear or even control her voice. Blood rushed in her ears. The sound of her breathing came shallow. 

Daredevil turned to the door. Steps came closer. The loud thudding of steel-enforced boots bounced off the floor. They were carrying heavy guns, fingers methodically fiddling with the trigger. The doors were locked, but not for long. They’d find a way to break through.

Eliza coughed. The oxygen was heavy in the depths of her lungs. Gunpowder tickled her nose.

“We need to go,” Daredevil whispered to her.

She nodded again. The blood in her ears subsided, but everything else around her suddenly grew too loud in volume, and she couldn’t focus on anything but the body lying a few feet from them. A big lake of blood was forming around Robert Pfeiffer’s body.

“Is he dead?” the question came like a rustling paperback.

Daredevil cocked his head. There it was, the sound of a faint heartbeat. Labored breathing filled the air. He drowned out the screams.

“No, but he’s dying.”

She tried to push him off of her.

“You can’t help him,” he stopped her. “We need to get out before we get caught.”

“I wasn’t done questioning him.”

Daredevil moved to sit back on his heels. Her hands became furious. He tried to stop her but a particularly hard push knocked all air out of him. He wheezed. Through all the overwhelming sounds and smells he hadn’t focused on himself. The sharp pain in his shoulder shot straight through his entire body.

Eliza furrowed her eyebrows. She looked down to where his hand squeezed the place between his shoulder disk and his elbow. He ground his teeth together, the hiss threatening to slip him.

She removed his hand. “Oh, my god!” 

Someone hammered against the door. She stared at him, his injured frame and the pain expressed perfectly through his clenched jaw. The hammering grew louder. They were close to breaking down the door.

“That’s not supposed to happen, is it?”

“No,” he said. “It’s supposed to be bulletproof. Ah !” The pressure of her finger on the hole in his shoulder sent shockwaves of pain through him. 

Eliza inspected the wound. The flesh moved underneath her touch. She couldn’t feel any metal - there was nothing that would suggest the bullet was still inside. She patted along his suit until she found the back. The fabric was still intact. For all she knew, the projectile only grazed him. Though when she inspected the wound further she realized it ran deeper than expected. 

She ground her teeth. “Damn it! You’re losing too much blood,” she said. The blood coated her fingers from where it came oozing out. “I don’t know what was in that gun, but it certainly wasn’t a normal bullet.”

“It’s fine,” Daredevil assured her. 

He was lying. The speed at which he was losing blood could easily be compared to the speed limit on highways, but instead of following the rules, you drive twice as fast. The blood didn’t seem to slow down either. Eliza placed his hand on the wound, pressing down until his muscles shifted. He winced. 

“You really know how to take a hit,” she muttered. “Anyone else would’ve passed out by now.”

He chuckled breathlessly, though the movement shot straight to the core. “Runs in the family,” he said. 

“Yeah, well, you might need to hold on a little longer.” 

She looked over at Robert’s lifeless body. He was wearing jeans, jeans that were too big for him. He wore a tight leather belt around his waist. 

Eliza hesitated. Robert Pfeiffer was as good as dead, but Daredevil was still alive. She had a choice. She could squeeze him for answers until he was dead or she could save her partner’s life. He posed the biggest support she’d experienced in almost a year. He didn’t know her and yet he was ready to pull her out of the line of fire to save her life - twice. She owed him. Maybe he owed her too, but she owed him more than that. He saved her life. She couldn’t take it lightly. 

While the wound wasn’t life-threatening, she’d never seen such a deep graze before. Part of his arm was shredded. He’d already lost more blood than he should have. 

She had a choice. She needed to make it. 

Eliza huffed quietly. She pushed his hand further on the wound before removing her hand. “Keep pressure on it,” she told him. 

Daredevil frowned. Her steps retreated fast. She kept her head down, afraid someone might take another shot through the destroyed window front. Her boots dug into the lake of blood around Robert’s body. Looking at him, she hesitated. He was still breathing, still lucid. Blood came out of his mouth, he was shaking, but he was alive. He was alive and he most certainly could still talk, even if he only had a few minutes left to breathe before his lungs collapsed. 

He knew more than he let on. She could feel it in her heart that he held back. Fear got the better of him. Hell, part of him still wanted to protect Hydra. That’s just what they did - they manipulated their people to the point they would risk anything in their name. Even after captivity, their voices persisted. Part of Robert wanted to go back, another wanted to fight and then there was part of him that didn’t want to do anything. He was tired. She understood. 

His eyes widened at the sight of her. “R-red,” he choked out. 

“What?” she asked. 

“Don’t let them take you, Red,” he said. It wasn’t the color he meant. He wasn’t naming a color on the wheel, he was calling her name. “Y-you need to-” he coughed, “End it. End it before they can take you.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Your life. They get you, we’re all lost.”

Her lashes fluttered. It dawned on her; he was asking her to kill herself. He was asking her to end her life before Hydra could get a shot at her. The words didn’t scare her. The truly terrifying part was that she agreed. 

The choice between captivity and death was easy. She swore a long time ago that she would rather kill herself than let Hydra take her back. Robert was right. If it were to come down to it, Eliza would end her life in an instant, without question, without remorse. 

Part of the journey is the end. 

Eliza cracked her neck. He was getting to her. She reached around his waist, as she intended in the first place, and undid his belt. 

“I’m just gonna borrow this real quick,” she said. 

“Wait!” 

She had a choice and she made it. 

Daredevil searched for her support the moment she slid to her knees in front of him. His lips formed a thin line. The blood loss was starting to discolor his skin into white. He held onto her shoulder - any second and he would surely pass out. He felt like he was underwater. His senses caved in on him. He couldn’t breathe. The pain was the only sensation in the front of his mind. 

The lock on the door squeaked. They had thirty seconds, tops, to get out. Eliza checked her pockets. Still there. She wouldn’t have been willing to leave without it.

“Okay,” she said and grabbed his arm. “I’m gonna momentarily stop your blood flow. It should save us some time to get out of here. The downside, it’s gonna hurt like hell.”

He grunted. “Do it!” he said. “I can take it.”

“I hope so. On three. One…”

If there was one thing he cherished about her it was that she was not squeamish. Her inability to waste time when it came to rash decisions might’ve just saved his life. 

His lips parted in a cry that had her shaking. She felt every ounce of his pain. Her hand purposely stayed on him, trying to soothe what she could, but physical pain didn’t come from the soul. There was only so much she could do. 

The belt sat tightly over the wound, stopping the bleeding almost entirely. His senses knocked him back into high gear. The fog in his brain subsided. He could finally focus again. 

“You said on three ,” he choked out. “That wasn’t even one, Jesus!”

“I’m so sorry. I really am, but we have to go,” she said. “Can you stand?” 

“I’m fine.” She didn’t believe him, but they didn’t have time to argue.

Together, they managed to scramble to their feet and make a run for the separating door to room 21. She closed the door behind him, clicking the lock in place.

“There are too many people, we can’t fight our way out,” he said.

She leaned him against the laboratory table. “I know. I’m trying to come up with a plan.”

“We have to make it to the roof.”

“I know. Stop telling me what to do.”

“Sorry, bad habit.” He threw his head back. “Just, I think I might pass out in the next five minutes.”

“No,” Eliza said sternly. 

“No?”

“I refuse. You’re not gonna pass out.”

“Oh, okay,” he chuckled. “I’ll make sure my circulation gets the message.”

On the other side, the police finally broke through the door. Their orders were a blur. Daredevil reached for her hand. She knew what he was going to say. 

“We need to run, now .”

Eliza wrapped an arm around his waist to stabilize him. “When I say go, you go.“

“What?”

“Trust me,” she said. 

Her chest filled with fire. As her hands began to glow, he felt a strange tingle running through him. She flicked her wrist. The door unlocked.

The fog began to grow around him. She closed her eyes. The world before her eyes was one of pure crimson. A world in which they both made it out alive. The stress had taken a toll on her, and the anger had drained her to the last drop. She wasn’t used to constant outbursts - her powers were the youngest child in class who couldn’t possibly keep up with big ones at playtime. 

She bit into her cheek. There was only so much left and she would make sure he used every last bit of it to get to the other side. 

One last breath and then, “Go!”

Daredevil fell against the doorframe. “What about you?” he asked.

“Right behind you. Go!”

He flung the door open. Stepping into the hallway, he realized the attention passed right by him. The heartbeats of the people around him sounded faint.  

Go, he remembered her words. The adrenalin was high, the pain even higher. He couldn’t believe it when he fell into the stairwell unnoticed. Once he broke through, he pressed his back to the cold wall. His arm throbbed. 

Eliza twirled her wrists. It was exhausting, making them see what she wanted them to see. She felt dizzy from making everyone disappear. The power seemed to be fading. She wasn’t sure if the shield was going to hold or if she would end up walking straight into her demise. Her feet carried themselves. She wasn’t in control, swimming in a bubble over the quietest pool. Reality ate away at her, all flies trying to bite into her rotting flesh. 

The door shut behind her, locked tight. Was it her or was it Daredevil? Her hands searched for the handrail. The world spun so fast, she could’ve sworn she’d gone blind. Her lungs rejected the oxygen she tried to give them. She was so incredibly weak in the knees, she just wanted to sit down on the cold stone floors and dig her face into the sweet relief. 

Two arms found her. He dragged her back up. “You alright?” he asked. 

Either answer would’ve been a lie. Instead, she shrugged. 

“I think I might need a minute,” she admitted. 

“We don’t have a minute.”

Her bubble burst.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. Just…” She reached for his hand. “I think I might be the one about to pass out now.”

“No,” he said firmly. 

“No?”

“You’re not gonna pass out.”

“Sure, I’ll let my circulation know you said that.”

He laughed. Unlike the sour laughs he’d given her before, he meant this one. It was genuine, amused even. 

“I’ve got you.” Three simple words. That’s all it took. 

Their fingers intertwined. He used all his strength to stabilize her. She tried to return the favor, but she was spent. The world crashed down on her and she couldn’t hold it. She couldn’t hold anything, not even her own. 

They jumped the stairway two steps at once. The door to the roof was locked. He threw himself at it, breaking the lock. An alarm went off. The cold air hit them in the face. 

Eliza stood on the gravel. The stones dug into her boots. She was suddenly so aware of everything. The loud voices, the sirens, the speed of the wind. 

Robert Pfeiffer was brutally murdered in front of her. If it hadn’t been for her stubbornness, she would’ve never come to meet him, but she followed her gut and it ended up with one man dead and another injured. All because she couldn’t just drop it . 

It was pathetic, really. Tony warned her. He warned her something like this might happen. He told her to stop before she even started. Anyone with half a brain would’ve listened. She was supposed to know better. She was supposed to be the golden child. She was supposed to be anyone but this . Mangled girl in way over her head, a walking danger to everyone around her. How could she possibly begin to explain this? She was a fool, she told herself. A stupid, greedy fool. 

And now the blood on her hands was hot and sticky and it wouldn’t come off.

Daredevil reached for her arm. “Something’s wrong,” he said.

She gasped for breath. “ Everything’s wrong!” it was a hysterical scream she was not proud of.

“Angel-“

“That guy just got shot in front of us, D! What the fuck! Hydra… they knew we’d come. That’s the only explanation. Shit!”

“They got what they wanted.”

“Yeah and now someone’s dead ! I didn’t… I never wanted anyone to die.”

“I know you didn’t. Neither did I, but it’s not your fault. Listen,” he reached for her face with one of his gloved hands. “Something’s really wrong and it’s not just the fact that Pfeiffer died. This guy… I heard him, on the other side of the building. He’s an assassin, but he shot more than once. He- he didn’t just aim at him .“

“We’re witnesses,” she said. “Of course, he’d try to shoot us.”

“No, you. He wanted to shoot you .”

“How can you be so sure?”

“The angle was completely off. I-” he rolled his shoulder, “The only reason the bullet went for me is that I shielded you. I pulled you down. Pfeiffer wasn’t even in the line of fire. Not with my arm a few inches to the right and you- if I hadn’t been there, this bullet would’ve gone through you.”

“You expect a thank-you card?”

“Trust me,” he pleaded. “I can’t explain it to you because it wouldn’t make any sense, but you just gotta trust me. When you told me about Hydra, I underestimated them. That was my mistake. You’re in danger now. That changes things.”

“I was in danger from the beginning,” she retorted. 

“Your life is in danger.”

“I know. Does it look like I care?”

He only scowled.

“No, didn’t think so. If I die, I die.”

His fingers dug deeper into her skin. The feeling of his hands slowed her heart rate. She swallowed, then gently wrapped her fingers around his wrists as well. 

Daredevil felt her pulse. His index finger traced the skin just below her wrist, feeling the blood pump right underneath it and somehow, it made him feel better. For just a minute, he could breathe.

“You’re not gonna die,” he said.

“Says who?”

“I do.”

“Okay,” she caved. “I’m not gonna die,” she said. “But neither are you. No one else dies. There’s a big ‘do not enter’ sign on the afterlife.”

He chuckled to make light of the situation. “Okay.” The next sound that left his lips though resembled a breathy moan.

Eliza stared at the tourniquet. “I’m gonna need to take a look at your shoulder.”

“Yeah, I’d appreciate that.”

Eliza placed the hand holding onto her wrist over the wound, urging him to keep the pressure steady. He nodded slowly. The pain was clear in the little she could see on his face, but he refused to actively show it.

She wrapped an arm around the small of his back. “C’mon.”

They made their way off the roof in silence. The streets were dark, the sirens left behind. She guided them to her apartment, over the roof and the fire escape that eventually led to the window to her living room. 

“Why don’t we take the front doo- ah !” She basically shoved him through the slot. 

Daredevil hit the ground like a wet towel. 

“Because I’m a bad girl and I can’t be left alone,” she said, sliding in after him.

He turned on his back, chest heaving. “That makes sense.”

“Don’t bleed out on my floor.”

“I won’t.”

“Then why the fuck are you still lying there? Get up.”

Eliza searched for the first aid kit in the kitchen. By the time she’d grabbed the alcohol and prepared a bowl of water to wet the towel in, he was still on the floor, groaning and panting. She placed all supplies on the dinner table, flicking on the small desk lamp she kept for emergencies. The big one in the ceiling followed. She adjusted the brightness. In his pained state, he didn’t need to be blinded as well, she figured. 

“It would help if you took off that mask,” Eliza stated. She watched him struggle to get up some more, but it seemed like he was stuck. He was sore all over. 

“Not gonna happen,” he retorted.

She placed her arms under his shoulders and dragged him up. He made all kinds of sounds that, in another context, could easily have been pornographic. She placed him down on one of the dining chairs, back to back. 

He leaned his forehead on the cold wooden table. The silence was like comfort to him. The heat in his body welcomed the lowered thermostat, the wet towel she used to pat him down, and even the cold glass of water she offered him. It soothed the ache inside of him. Some things aren’t easily fixed with a needle and a thread. 

Her hands began to work on his suit, but he barely felt it – he focused solely on her heartbeat and her distinctive smell. That night, there was a slight sense of sweat inside her natural odor, but the vanilla, books, and plants remained. She smelled like fall and summer, all at once like walking through a pumpkin patch and after that, the inside of a plant shop. He found comfort in the way she breathed so evenly, the way her scent danced around his nose like it was meant to be. 

His senses were always so busy, always clouded, always overstimulated everywhere he went – and he never dared to show it because weakness was a disability. Stick had taught him that and life after hadn’t been so kind, either. Weakness brought on more bad than good, so he didn’t show it, not really, not if he could control it. The discomfort was part of his gift. Considering it anything less than that would’ve made him ungrateful, and then that would’ve made him weak. Twenty years later and he still had the old man mess with his head. He knew better, he’d learned a lot from being on his own, but everywhere he went, Stick followed him like a resilient bastard ghost. 

Every once in a while, the world becomes a little too much. Every once in a while, he was tired of pretending it didn’t bother him, that the world wasn’t actively hurting him. Every once in a while, he simply wanted to lock himself in a soundproof, sterile room and cry. It was one of those days then. It had been for quite a while. 

Eliza grounded him. She didn’t smell too much or breathe too loud, her heart wasn’t too fast in its natural state and she didn’t speak waterfalls into his ear. She was annoying, yes, but her voice was a sound he could get used to. Not too low, not too high, never shrill, just a sweet sing-song with a hint of anger issues. And if he listened close enough, he heard hints of a foreign accent, perfectly hidden beneath the facade she kept up for the people around her.

She was his solace, apparently. She was the isolated room he wanted to cry in. And she didn’t even know that the man she was so kindly sewing back together was lying to her. 

You’ve got yourself into quite the predicament, Matthew.

Eliza somehow managed to peel him out of his suit. The cold air hit his bare torso, snapping him back into reality.

“What are you thinking about?” she said softly behind him. Her breath graced his heated skin.

His flesh squished as she assessed the situation, rubber gloves mapping him out. Instead of an answer, he hissed. She apologized. 

Daredevil hummed at the numbing cream she smeared around the injury. “You’re calm,” he found himself saying.

Eliza was too stunned to answer. People used a lot of words to describe her, calm had never even once been a topic of question. She was loud, annoying, had no social skills, and sometimes, she treated people like disposable toys. Some even said she was simply a bitch. They claimed that even with her powers, empathy had passed by her. She was considered cold and sometimes, she was a bit overbearing. Sometimes she cared too much whereas, at a different time, she didn’t care at all. All of these words meant nothing to her. She didn’t mind being called names; she had gotten used to it – his words sent a shiver down her spine, something she would have only described as comfort .

“I’m gonna stitch you up now,” she told him.

“I thought you already did.” He chuckled.

“Shut up before I throw you out of my apartment.”

She stitched the flesh together without another word from either of them. He was still wearing his red mask. The horns stood at full attention. Her mind wandered off. Who was the man behind the mask? He seemed like a broken man, good at heart. With darkness inside of him, one he was scared of. He didn’t know much about the world. He always trod carefully and disappeared into his own little world.

“Angel?” he asked then. She hummed. “Why are you doing this?”

Eliza knew what he meant. This, working with him, patching him up, being nice to him.

“You’re not as bad as I thought,” she said, daring to smile.

He chuckled at the mocking sound of her voice. “That’s… nice to hear.”

“And, you know, you were there when no one else was. I need help, I was just too proud to admit that. I’ve realized how I missed this, working as a team. You didn’t ask, you just rolled with it. No second guessing.”

“I’ve never worked as a team before.”

She hummed again as she tied the knot on the thread. Metal clinked against the table. She pressed gauze against the freshly stitched wound.

“Press here.” He did as he was told. “For what it’s worth,” she said then, “We both needed someone. We protect each other. It works.”

He chuckled again, lower this time. “Yeah,” he said, “It works.”

“ We work.”

“So, what now?”

Not once did she ask about his scars. She didn’t cross that line, wouldn’t even dare.

“The Viper,” she said with disgust.

“Yeah.”

“We need to find him.”

He repeated his previous words. With a lot of grunts, he slipped back into the top of his suit. His shoulder ached, but he barely felt the stitches. “Tomorrow night,” he stated. “I know people that know people. You can get far by asking around in Hell’s Kitchen. Someone must’ve heard that name before.”

“So, ask questions, shoot later?” she chuckled. “You seem like that typa of guy.”

“I don’t shoot, I just ask.” He shot her a smile from the dark. The moonlight broke through the window and illuminated his face.

“I know.”

He touched his way forward until he found the windowpane. It was still open. “Can I count on you?” he asked. The night air broke into the apartment. Sounds of cars and people flooded the perfect bubble. Hell’s Kitchen was loud, deafening, and he wished he could just stay .

Eliza patted her thighs. “That reminds me,” she said.

He stopped in his tracks. He heard the hitch of her breath, her heartbeat.

“I took something.” Her fingers, still gloved, searched through her pockets.

“What?”

“One of the vials. I took it.”

Daredevil lowered his head. “ What ?” with his head, his voice fell too.

“Before he was shot and he showed me the box, I grabbed it. I thought- well, I don’t trust him. I don’t trust the flash drive. I realized that, so I took it. I- I don’t know what came over me.”

She didn’t expect him to react hostile though. “They’re willing to kill for that,” he said, finger pointing to the small glass between her fingers. “You’re already on their radar. If they found out one of them is missing-“

“I couldn’t help myself! It’s the only proof I have in case things go south. I needed something to hold onto.”

“God!” He tightened his fist around the handle. “You’re a pain in the ass, you know that?” he said.

Eliza gnawed on her lip. “Yeah?”

He slipped back into his gloves. “Tomorrow night,” he pointed at her, “I’ll come to you.”

“What,” she said, “you’re gonna throw rocks at my window?”

He slipped through the crack. “If you don’t stop acting like an idiot, I’m gonna throw a brick.”

“Wow.”

“At your face.”

“ Wow !”

Even when she believed him to be gone, he proved her wrong once again. He peeked his head through the window, standing on the fire escape. To be fair, she didn’t see it coming and it was his fault she almost banged it down onto his neck.

“Thank you,” he said.

The air smelled of him long after he was gone. She watched his silhouette jump the roof, disappearing into the dark. With a sigh, she lowered the window, fastening the lock. The silence of her apartment was back, like a shield guarding her against the world.

It came in a sudden blow - that something that always turned her head. 

The picture of Robert’s lifeless body in a pool of his own blood. She had blood on her hands. Not just his, everyone’s. The palms of her hands were oceans of red bodily fluid. She was drowning in it. 

Eliza bit the inside of her cheek. Her lungs contracted, reaching for her, but all she could see and breathe was the light of dead bodies. Body over body on a pile of bleeding corpses. Thousands of needles danced on her skin. She was heavy, her hands were heavy. The blood dripped off her fingers. 

She dug her nails deep into her palms but it wasn’t enough. 

The tap opened, and water came flowing out. She put her hands underneath the water and just began to scrub. She scrubbed the soap so deep into her skin, that she felt it hit the bone. The water was piping hot. It burned sweetly in the cracked skin of her knuckles, but even when everything was red, she didn’t stop. The water was red. It was so red, the entire sink had been painted crimson, and she couldn’t see anything else. 

The world began to draw circles around her head. She tried to breathe, but her lungs filled with water. Fire tore through her. She felt every bone at once. Something thick layered her skin. She needed it off, all off. She basically ripped the shirt off her body. Gasping, tears in her eyes – she felt utterly pathetic. The constant ringing in her ears mixed with the distant sound of voices in the back of her head. They were so loud, screaming and tearing at her. She needed to get out, get out of here. She didn’t know where exactly, the cage just seemed death-locked and the walls came caving in, too. 

Eliza tried so hard to focus on five things. She just needed five things. 

“Don’t cry, you were chosen for a reason. You are so very special. I’m gonna help you see that.”

She squeezed her eyes shut. Stars danced in the darkness behind her lids.

Five things you can see. Go.

She dared to open her eyes again. The kitchen was spinning fast, like a carousel out of control. Black dots clouded her vision; no matter how hard she blinked, the darkness only extended.

The microwave stood on top of the kitchen counter. In the warped perception, it looked less like a microwave and more like a monster with its mouth wide open. The clock on the oven showed the early hours of the morning. She saw the oven, too. A pot of leftover mac and cheese she forgot to put in the fridge. Next to it stood the bottle of hot sauce. Empty beer bottles littered the liquor corner on the floor. 

Air crept down her windpipe. Her lungs rejected the desperate attempt to inhale the life-sustaining oxygen. Though it was there and it had no intention of giving up. 

Four things you can feel. 

“ She’s not ready. She doesn’t know how to control it - whatever it is. Hell, we don’t even know what it is. Something’s inside of her for sure. ”

“ We need to keep going, see how far we can go. Isn’t that the whole point? ”

With her shirt off, the cold of the tiles in the kitchen became more prominent. She lowered herself down, chest heaving and her mouth gasping desperately for relief from the dark burning that every exhale brought to her weak lungs. 

She was tired, and dizzy. The ringing in her ears was so loud. She wanted to scream, cry, or die. She just wanted to disappear, crawl beneath a rock and come out when it was all over.

Four things you can feel. 

Eliza pressed her chest closer to the kitchen tiles. She could feel the cold. Her knuckles burned at the harsh contact with the ground. The thudding of her heart up to her throat, she surely felt that. It was painful. The lace of her bra as she traced her fingers down her chest, still searching for a miracle, she felt that too. 

Three things you can hear. 

“ You are capable of so many powerful things, my dear. The world will crumble at your feet. ”

The fridge buzzed, cooling the groceries inside down to an acceptable temperature. The slow drip, drip, drip of the faucet above her head managed to penetrate the fog clogging her hearing. Her neighbors celebrated someone’s birthday in the apartment below. The music was loud enough to shake the ground. 

Two things you can smell. 

“ Don’t forget who raised you. You’re doing this for us, not for yourself. No one else wanted you before we came along. We saved you, we made you. You owe us your life. Only with us, you can unfold your true potential. And you want to be the greatest, don’t you, little one ?”

The mac and cheese on the stove carried the scent of mold slowly growing on the top. Leaving food out in the middle of summer was a bad idea indeed. 

Eliza closed her eyes to separate the distinctive scents in the air. Rain, leather, and sweat, the remains of gunpowder and blood - Daredevil. He left his scent behind, marking her apartment as his. He was like a cat, not only in stealth but in the way he never failed to remind Eliza that he existed. He followed her, protected her, and left parts of him in her apartment. She wanted to hate him, she really did, but he was right; he listened when no one else did. 

One thing you can taste. 

“ Good morning, soldat. Are you ready to comply? ”

She tasted salt on her tongue. Wet, fat drops of tears fell down her cheeks and past her lips. Open wide, she was gasping for breath. The salt burned on the small cracks she had from gnawing on her bottom lip too much. 

The cotton popped from her ears suddenly. The lock holding both wings of her lungs hostage opened, the dam breaking entirely and allowing the air to flood her windpipe. She inhaled loudly. It burned at first, almost tearing her chest to pieces, but then the sweet relief settled in and all she could do was breathe so heavily, she could never forget the feeling again. 

The sound of the world, sirens, cars, and people crashed in. The cold tiles left shivers on her skin. Black dots turned into nothing but light. She was back in her kitchen. The furniture no longer drew circles around her vision. 

The world was real and she was real, too. 

Eliza turned onto her back, exhausted and drained. She slept in the same position before. From time to time they happened - the panic attacks. They came suddenly, without warning, some worse than others. She was often too focused to recognize the triggers. Life happened too fast, it passed by in flashes, never stuck to the speed limit, and almost always missed the train station when she wanted it to stop. Life had its own schedule and breaks weren’t on the timeline. She often found herself pulling the emergency lever, causing the train to hit the brakes and just stop. By then, it was already too late. The train had missed its station and even with space to breathe, she wouldn’t be able to get off anytime soon. 

In moments of silence, once her mind was actively thinking again, the thread of sanity that kept her functioning during the day snapped. The thread snapped with full force and everything it had been holding up to this point came crashing down on her, burying and drowning her beneath the rubble. 

She placed a hand on her heart, listening to the way it sounded almost normal again. With every breath, the beat slowed down. It found the natural rhythm again. She squeezed the tears away. She was okay. Not fine, not great, but she was okay. She was alive, she was breathing, and she was physically unharmed. She was okay. 

Sighing tiredly, she turned on her side. Both hands were under her head as a pillow shielded her from the hard kitchen floor. She found comfort in the cold. The day had drained everything out of her, it even drained her sanity. She had no choice but to comply with the heavy drooping of her eyelids. 

Thud, thud, thud. The sound of her heart pulled her into comfortable darkness where everything was kind of okay. A place of hope and dreams. A happy place.

Eliza chased sleep like a lost sheep, and for the first time in days, she finally caught it.

#matt murdock #daredevil #foreigner's god #matt murdock x original character #matt murdock x oc #matt murdock x ofc #matt murdock angst #matt murdock fluff #matt murdock smut #matt murdock x female!oc #human disaster matt murdock #foggy nelson #karen page #matt murdock imagines #marvel #daredevil fic #matt murdock fic #avengers #reader insert #ofc

[lucascsinclairs]

41 & 42 ?

41. What is your least favorite part about your gif making process? Hmm well it's not really a specific part of my process, but I guess just those moments when you have a clear idea of what you want something to look like in your head and it's just not working out. Also brightening dark scenes cause omg are there many of those in this show!

42. How is your gif folder organized? Is it organized at all? It's pretty organized, I think. As it has to be, since I pretty much keep every gif I've made, so it needs to be organized to not be a complete mess haha. I have folders for the different seasons and then for characters and episodes under those. Then also folders and sub folders for specific series I'm doing, like the color palette edits or my set design sets.

Here's the folder for my recent episode 8 set to kind of show what a folder for a set looks like. I tend to hold on to the .psd files, but they take a lot of space on my hard drive so I should go through my folders and delete them. They just come in handy if I ever want to replicate a coloring.

#answered #thanks for sending in the questions anon!

[mohitjoshi041]

How To Use a Highlighter Palette to Enhance Your Features?

Using a highlighter can improve the color of your skin and draw attention to your strong bone structure. Applying a highlighter is quick because you need to touch up a few areas of your face. You can, however, brighten your entire face with a few dabbles of highlighter. Applying highlighter is simple, even if you are not experienced in makeup application. The power of a face palette is evident to anyone who has ever applied foundation and looked somewhat two-dimensional. You can quickly achieve extremely well-defined cheekbones with just a few swift strokes of blush, contour, and bronzer. Below you can see about how to use a highlighter palette to enhance your features: 

A multi-purpose contouring kit 

Seek out a complete kit that can do all the required face-sculpting procedures. This way, you won't have to search your makeup bag for several palettes or different highlighters. Select the ideal highlighter palette that includes the tones that you find most appealing. Applying a highlighter to your face's high points will give you an ethereal glow, and adding bronzer will give it some significant depth. If you want to show your cheekbones some love, apply pink blush there. 

Grab attention to your lips 

It is time to step up your lip game if you love lipstick and like to draw attention to your lips with vibrant, exciting colors. To have larger lips, you don't require a lip injection. Carefully draw your lips using a lip liner that matches your lip color. Apply the lip color of your choice and accentuate your lips. Apply a few highlighters to your cupid bow using a glow highlighter makeup brush. It enhances the fullness of your lips and adds a lot of volume to your entire lip look. 

Contour your cheekbones and jaw 

Proceed to the hollows of your cheeks once you have integrated the contour surrounding your hairline. Move the brush along the indentation, then back out toward your ear and toward the center of your face. Apply the best highlighter for face on your jawline, working your way up from the base of your ear to just below the point of your chin, as soon as the mix of the outline surrounding your cheekbones. When these stages are combined, they should form a shape that looks like three. 

Sweep highlighter onto your brow bones 

It is good to draw attention to the areas directly beneath your eyebrows since they will reflect much light. Try applying highlighter all over the space directly beneath your eyebrows and brow bones. Keep the majority of the highlighter on the brow bone's outer margins. It is not necessary to cover your entire brow bone with a highlighter. For added eye-brightening impact, you can also reach down toward the folds of your eyelids with the highlighter. When you are buying highlighter, it is best to check the highlighter price to know about its worthiness. 

Bottom line 

Finally, the above mentioned are about how to use a highlighter palette to enhance your features. Character Cosmetics Promise face highlighter is ideal if you want a highly pigmented, long-wearing face highlighter product. The illuminating and buildable highlighter comes in many shades that match all skin tones and leaves your skin looking flawless.

#Highlighter Palette #Highlighter #Palette

[inktattoo]

The Art of Black and Grey: Shadows, Shading, and Realism

The captivating world of black and grey tattoos intrigues the aesthetic design of individuals. It allows the artists to explore various tattoo-making skills, which creates a dance of shadow and sometimes delves into the genre of realism.

There are tattoo shops on the Gold Coast or at other locations where one can get interesting tattoos, and there, they can get skilled artists who can create unparalleled depth with their work. In this blog, we will delve into tattoo-making art through black and grey inks and how they can create shadows and depths.

The Origins: Black and Grey In Tattoo History

One must understand the roots of black and grey tattooing so that one can captivate the time and understand the perspective of tattoos. Tattoos are a great part of ancient culture, where individuals used to be in tribes, and there, it has a lot of cultural significance. Through evolution, the art form was transformed, and then the modern tattoo-making process came into place.

Now comes the modern time, where the ideas and art of tattoos are still prevalent, but they have some of the constraints of a monochromatic palette.

Shades of Mastery: Understanding the Power of Shadows

The significance of shadows is huge when it comes to tattooing. The use of grey and black in the correct proportion increases the depth of the tattoo, and that creates a look where the tattoo becomes prominent and creates a vibe where it looks real and natural.

A skilled artist uses various shades, and they create by using the right proportion of ink, and through that, they create the brightness and contrast of their customer’s tattoos.

The Play of Light: Shading Techniques in Realism

The intricacies of shading techniques come through the black and grey tattoos to achieve a realistic effect. It is created and made in such a manner that whenever the tattoo gets introduced under a light source, it will look different and will appear brighter to achieve realistic results.

These tattoos can play between light and dark in creating lifelike imagery, which will make the tattoo a part of realism culture. The importance of creating a realism-based tattoo is that it needs to be accurate in shades and shadows. Otherwise, the entire work will fall apart and will not be a significant one.

Here, one can look for tattoo places in Surfer’s Paradise or at their location, where they will find proficient and experienced artists in traditional tattoo work.

Beyond Black: Incorporating Negative Space

The need for negative space is crucial in black and grey tattoos as it allows the colors to brighten up under a light wand and will have spaces for shadow formation, which will give a different look altogether.

Artists can use this leverage to create new and abstract art, which will encourage enthusiasts to keep such space as it will create contrast and look like a real and visually striking design. Hence, the artists know how to do an intricate design that will look real and abstract and will match the design outlay preferred by the enthusiasts.

The stated process of tattooing shows a variety of things an artist can do with their art with just the help of black and grey inks.

#tattoo places surfers paradise #Tattoo Shop Gold Coast

[lozthehattattoo]

Watercolor tattoo

Do you want to get a tattoo? Are you enthusiastic about tattoos and want commodity new and intriguing this time? Do you know what a literalism tattoo is? Are you looking for the stylish literalism tattoo artist? also we're then to help you in this exploration. We're then to save your precious time and have formerly done the exploration and brought this composition for you to help you out. Just read this composition, and you'll get all the necessary information regarding and their artists. So, let us continue.

What's a literalism tattoo?

Watercolor tattoo

Black and gray tattoo artist

Loz tattoos wigan

Loz tattoos in Wigan town

Tattoo in the body

Best body jewelry shops

Tattoo artist and body piercer 

Best jewellery piercing

Best body jewelry shop online

Before getting to know the stylish literalism tattoo artist, we should first understand the meaning of a literalism tattoo. those tattoos that portray the exact 3D image of real effects present in the world around you. Literalism tattooing isn't an easy job for both the artist and the customer. The artist requires a lot of practice before reaching the stylish position. thus, choosing the right literalism tattoo artist is pivotal if you want excellent results. You have to perform some serious exploration before choosing your literalism tattoo artist because every artist isn't a practical or educated artist.

History of literalism tattoos

Literalism tattoos were introduced in the 1850s against the romantic art movement in France. This is a brief one- line history for you to know.

Types of literalism tattoos

There are two major types of grounded on color;

• Black and slate tattoo

As the name indicates, these tattoos only have black and slate colors. This type of literalism tattoo gives an advantage to the artist that he or she can concentrate more on the perfection and literalism of the tattoo and only on the shadowing part of the tattoo.

• Full- color tattoo

In this type of tattoo, we use gouaches, and the tattoo is more various. This type of tattoo requires much further focus and time. You must choose the finest tattoo artist for this type of literalism tattoo, and Iron Siren" Liz" is the stylish choice you have.

Literalism tattoo designs

There's a wide range of designs and objects that you can paint on your skin by the art style, but the most common are as follows

• Photos

The most common demand in literalism tattoo is the portrayal of a real person. This snap may be of any friend or family member. You love them so much that you want to publish their picture on your body. People frequently want a tattoo of their favorite celebrities or indeed faves , and the literalism tattooing fashion is the stylish way to get it done and get the asked results.

• Nature

People also like getting geographies, flowers, and beast pictures on their bodies. It depends on yourchoice.However, also flowers are the stylish option, or you could indeed get a large geography on your body, If you're going to devote a small part of your body to fulfill your desire.

Around the Web

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How to choose the stylish literalism tattoo artist?

Keep in mind that a simple tattooing artist isn't inescapably trained in literalism tattooing, thus you need to be careful in opting theartist.However, it'll be a disaster, If you choose an inexperienced literalism artist. So, you need to know about their work experience and the tattoo designs they've formerly sketched or painted. It would help if you saw their portfolio and the type and fashion they use for tattooing. All of this requires a lot of time and energy but don't worry; we're then with the stylish literalism tattoo artist in 2021" Liz." She has 10 times of experience in literalism tattooing and is an award- winning artist.

Liz has worked with numerous shops internationally and locally and put her heart and soul into her work. She has a pop- up shop named Iron Siren in Sicamous BC, and she has started taking appointment. rather of going into the hassle of exploration and chancing the wrong literalism artist, you can help all that and contact Liz directly and bandy the type, size, and placement of your literalism tattoo, get your appointment time, and get started. The booking is starting from June 30th to August 30th so, don't waste any further time and bespeak your appointment in Iron Siren and get your customized and unique from the stylish literalism tattoo artist.

#Watercolor tattoo

[happyaliving]

5 Benefits of Studio Apartments in Berlin

If you're considering a move to the enchanting city of Berlin and searching for a place to call your own, studio apartments in Berlin might just be the perfect choice. These compact living spaces have a lot to offer, and in this article, we'll explore the five key benefits of choosing a studio flat in Berlin.

1. Affordable Living in the Heart of the City

Berlin is a city known for its rich history, vibrant culture, and dynamic lifestyle. It's also a city that's quite affordable compared to many other European capitals, and this affordability extends to the rental market. Studio apartments in Berlin are often more budget-friendly than larger apartments, making them an excellent option for those looking to experience city living without breaking the bank.

Whether you're a student, a young professional, or simply someone who values practicality, studio apartments offer a cost-effective solution. You can allocate your resources to explore Berlin's unique cultural scene, savor its diverse culinary delights, and partake in its lively nightlife.

2. Efficient Use of Space

Studio apartments are known for their efficient use of space. In Berlin, where space can be at a premium, this is particularly advantageous. Your living, sleeping, cooking, and dining areas are typically combined in one room, but don't let that deter you. With a bit of creativity and smart organization, you can make the most of your studio apartment.

Look for multifunctional furniture, such as sofa beds, to optimize your living space. These pieces can serve as comfortable seating during the day and transform into a cozy bed at night. By arranging your furniture thoughtfully, you can create distinct zones in your studio, ensuring that everything has its place.

3. A Canvas for Personal Expression

One of the most exciting aspects of a studio apartment is the opportunity to make it uniquely yours. Your apartment is a blank canvas waiting for your creative touch. Use decoration and design to infuse your personality into the space. Hang artwork that resonates with you, display photographs of cherished memories, and adorn your apartment with decorative pieces that reflect your style.

With Berlin's artistic and eclectic vibe, you'll find inspiration all around you. Explore local markets, vintage shops, and flea markets to discover one-of-a-kind items that can add character to your studio. The process of decorating your apartment can be an enjoyable and fulfilling part of your journey.

4. Versatile Color Schemes

Color plays a significant role in creating the atmosphere of a room. Studio apartments in Berlin often benefit from light and neutral color schemes. Lighter tones can make your space feel more expansive and airy, which is especially valuable in smaller apartments. They also reflect natural light better, further brightening up your living quarters.

However, this doesn't mean you need to settle for a monotonous color palette. Use colorful accessories, like throw pillows, rugs, or curtains, to introduce vibrant pops of color and give your studio apartment a unique character. This versatility allows you to create a space that truly feels like home.

5. Embrace Berlin's Vibrant Community

Living in a studio apartment doesn't mean you have to sacrifice your sense of community. In fact, studio flats in Berlin often come with the added benefit of being situated in prime locations. This proximity to the city's attractions, public transportation, and essential amenities allows you to immerse yourself in Berlin's vibrant community.

Explore your neighborhood, visit local cafes, markets, and parks, and engage with your neighbors. Building connections in your community can enhance your sense of belonging and make your studio apartment feel more like a home.

#rental apartment in berlin #shared apartments in berlin

[undertheashtree]

All Because I Saw a Purple Tree.

I’ve recently struggled through a large creative block, and waiting for my normal stream of ideas and creativity to begin flowing again has been a bit disheartening. About a week ago, I was driving around, running errands, and trying to come up with a new idea for a BYOP (build your own palette). As soon as I told myself to stop trying to force it, and that inspiration would come when it was supposed to, a beautiful little sight came up on my right. A tree with what appeared to be plum colored leaves (which I’ve since learned might be called an Eastern Redbud, but I’m not totally sure), settled between two trees with dark green leaves, captured my attention. It felt so wonderfully autumnal compared to bright blue sky and overbearing sun, and I knew at that moment that my next palette needed to be plum and green.

And, of course, it’s beautifully grungy. I wanted only plums and greens in this one, no blues, no neutrals, just those two, gorgeous, contrasty colors. Notably, there aren’t any light or pastel mattes in here either, and the lightest shade is a metallic lime green (top right).

Making this palette also made me realize that, while I don’t wear my multichrome eyeshadows all that often, I do reach for them a lot when building my own palettes, especially ones with contrasting colors. It’s an easy way to bridge the gap between the colors I’m working with, and multichromes can be incredibly versatile.

There’s not much to explain with this one, but I’ll try to give some more insight into my thought process.

Black Hyacinth (bottom left) is a black with plum undertones, and before I even sat down to make this palette, I knew this would be the first thing to go in. Most black eyeshadows tend to lean neutral or cool-toned, so having a plummy, warm-undertone black is nice for a palette like this. It works best with warmer toned shadows when blending, but I find it’s black enough, and the warmth is subtle enough, that it can work with other colors like green.

I essentially built the rest of the palette around Black Hyacinth, which is definitely the backbone of the palette, given it’s the most versatile thing in the palette. The reason it’s the most versatile is mainly for it’s depth (making it useful for deepening different kinds of looks, as an eyeliner, and/or for detail work), but it can work with the plums or greens in the palette, and as pairing or base for the black-based multichrome in the palette.

Speaking of the multichrome, Nirvana (middle row, last shade) shifts from a couple shades of green, blue, and silver. Depending on the angle, I can also see some warm purple, but that’s really dependent on the lighting and the angle. The dominant colors are definitely the greens and the warm silver, which I feel compliments both the greens and plums in the palette.

For the rest of the matte shades, my main priority was being able to create a blend with either the plums or greens. So I went with a dark matte of each color that was lighter than Black Hyacinth, and then an additional, slightly lighter shade to accompany that.

For the metallics, I wanted to keep them dark, and kind of grungy. Dress Up (center), is a really grungy plum with gold, green, and orange glitter, and Nightsky (bottom row, middle shade) is a blackened green with green, blue, and gold glitter. The last shade I chose was Prismatic (top row, last shade). I honestly didn’t know what to use to finish this color story, but I wanted it to be a 9-pan, so I decided to go with something light that I could potentially use to highlight or just brighten up a look. Prismatic has a lime green base that shifts pink and blue. Normally, it’s too pigmented for me to use as a highlight on my fair skin, but I’m wondering if the brightness of it will contrast off the darkness of the palette to be an effective highlight.

As always, I’ll leave you with some swatches (including a video I took that allows you to see the shifts in Nirvana) and a list of the eyeshadow names (along with their palettes, if any) which are written in order from left to right, top to bottom, according to the pallete.

Top row: Ego - Sugarpill single Forest - Beauty Bay Wilderness palette Prismatic - J.D. Glow single

Middle row: Speakeasy - Beauty Bay Age of Opulence palette Dress Up - Blend Bunny The Dollhouse palette Nirvana - Chaos Makeup single

Bottom row: Ivy - Beauty Bay Wilderness palette Nightsky - Dose of Colors Block Party single Black Hyacinth - Ace Beaute Floral Vintage palette

Here’s a link to my YouTube channel as well, if you want to see more from me!

#build your own palette #building my own palettes #byop #singles #makeup #cosmetics #beauty #eyeshadows #eyeshadow #palette #palettes

[apkfanda]

Photo Editor by BeFunky

Edit your photos. Create beautiful collages. Design stunning graphic design layouts. With BeFunky, you can do it all! We've taken the complexity out of the photo editing and graphic design process with our easy-to-use, one-tap features. With our A.I.-powered photo editing tools, intelligent auto-collage feature, and professionally made design templates, BeFunky truly is photo editing and graphic design made for everyone! Turn Your Photos Into Paintings, Cartoons, Sketches, and More Our Artsy effects are the most unique feature of our Photo Editor. With one tap, your photos will take on stunning, artistic characteristics. From realistic textures to natural-looking brush strokes and saturated color palettes, our artsy effects will instantly turn your photo into a work of art! Remove Backgrounds From Photos in One Tap Our A.I.-powered Background Remover intelligently detects the subject of your image and precisely removes the surrounding background. Perfect for changing backgrounds on product photography, portraits, and more! Enhance Image Appearance With A.I. There's a lot of trial and error and fine-tuning involved in enhancing a photo. Our A.I. Image Enhancer takes the guesswork out of photo editing. With a single tap, it'll make colors more vibrant and add a touch of contrast to enhance details, giving your photos what they need to really pop. Bring Out the Natural Beauty in Your Portraits Our A.I. Portrait Enhancer gives you professional portrait retouching results, all in a single tap. Quickly enhance exposure, soften the appearance of fine lines and blemishes on all skin tones, whiten teeth and brighten eyes without eliminating freckles and beauty marks! Create Photo Collages with a Single Tap Automatically generate the optimal collage layout with our Collage Wizard. It can quickly and easily produce high-resolution photo collages without cropping or clipping a single image, so no fine details get lost in the process. It’s automatic collage generating technology like no other! Access to Hundreds of Free Font Options Our Text Editor is packed full of fonts and customization options to add text to photos, designs, and collages. Choose from our collection of fonts hand-selected by our team of graphic designers, upload your own fonts, or use Google Fonts! Free Templates For Quick and Easy Graphic Design Our design templates offer the perfect starting point for any project. You’ll find thousands of design templates created by our team of professional graphic designers. We provide templates for birthdays, weddings, small businesses, and more! Don't want to start with a template? No problem! Start your design with a blank canvas and let your creativity take over! Give Your Photos a Unique Look There's truly no limit to what you can create! Everything from Vintage and Chromatic effects to filters that make your photo resemble a Van Gogh painting is right at your fingertips. Are you looking to add a texture, bokeh, or a design overlay? You'll find all that and more in BeFunky. Access Hundreds of Premium Features with BeFunky Plus Subscribe to BeFunky Plus on a monthly or annual basis to gain access to premium photo editing, collage making, and graphic design tools. Easily access our Plus features across our mobile and tablet apps as well as on the desktop web browser version of BeFunky by simply logging in. - For tips and inspiration, go to befunky.com/learn/ and follow @befunkyapp on Instagram Get help when you need it at support.befunky.com Read the full article

[vancouverkitchenrenovation]

Functional and Stylish: Balancing Practicality and Aesthetics in Kitchen Design

Incorporating colors and themes that reflect local culture and harmonize with Vancouver’s natural beauty is a great way to create a kitchen with timeless appeal. Likewise, using neutral tones that can be easily updated with trendier accents will help your kitchen stand the test of time.

A practical and user-friendly layout is also essential to a functional kitchen. Popular layout design concepts such as the kitchen triangle and zoning can ensure that your kitchen is organized efficiently.

Functionality

Modern kitchen design requires striking the right balance of form and function. Fortunately, renovation contractors and interior designers can offer homeowners tips for creating a kitchen that looks beautiful and serves its intended purpose.

For example, a well-planned layout can allow cooks to access utensils and ingredients quickly. To make this possible, consider storing items in locations that are close to the stove, sink and refrigerator. This will ensure that you always have what you need on hand, and it will also reduce the clutter that can often plague a kitchen.

In addition, incorporating a large kitchen island is an excellent way to add extra counter space and storage. Ideally, it should be situated so that the cook can face the living space and interact with guests as they prepare meals. Similarly, a good layout should provide easy access to the refrigerator and pantry, as well as a clear pathway between the cooking and dining areas.

Aesthetics

Achieving a harmonious blend of style and functionality in your kitchen starts with ensuring that you choose high-quality materials, invest in adequate lighting, and incorporate personal touches. With these elements in place, your kitchen can be both beautiful and practical, allowing you to complete tasks quickly and efficiently.

One of the most popular design trends in 2022 is minimalism, which focuses on clean lines and uncluttered surfaces. This aesthetic also aims for simplicity, making it an ideal approach to simple kitchen designs.

One way to achieve a minimalist aesthetic in your kitchen is to add hidden storage solutions that eliminate clutter from open shelves and countertops. Another tip is to use a carefully selected color palette to enhance the room’s atmosphere and mood. Lighter colors help brighten small spaces, while darker hues can make larger rooms feel cozier. You can also balance cool toned steel appliances with warmed toned accents like brass or bronze to add contrast in your space.

Flow

A well-designed kitchen has an easy flow, which is crucial to how the space functions. This means avoiding design elements that interfere with the natural path between kitchen and other spaces like the living room, or block pathways through the space.

Kitchen appliances should be placed in a way that makes sense for how the space is used. For example, the refrigerator should be close to the sink and stove so that food can easily be accessed without needing to walk far between them.

Kitchen accessories are also important to consider, as they can add a lot of personality to the space. For example, choosing the right cabinet hardware can make a big difference in the look of the kitchen, and using textured finishes can help create a more unique aesthetic. It is important to choose finishes that are not too trendy, however, as trends often come and go. The right mix of colors, textures, and materials will give your Vancouver kitchen a timeless, yet stylish feel.

Lighting

The best kitchens are not only visually appealing, they also function well. A well-designed kitchen should meet the needs of you and your family while providing a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Achieving this requires careful consideration of both aesthetics and functionality.

To create a functional yet stylish kitchen design, start by evaluating the overall style and theme you want to achieve. A clean and modern look works well with a neutral color palette, while warm earthy tones complement traditional or farmhouse-inspired kitchens. Consider the existing architectural style of your Vancouver home, too; choosing a color scheme that harmonizes with your space can help you create a seamless and cohesive kitchen design.

Next, allocate spaces based on proximity and functionality. Keep items you use frequently close together, like coffee mugs and grounds near the coffee machine and wrappers and plastic containers in one handy spot. Organize utensils and dishware in drawers and cabinets with custom storage solutions like Lazy Susans or tray dividers to make finding them easier.

Metro Vancouver’s Premier Kitchen and Bath Renovation Company

Your kitchen is more than just a place to cook; it’s a space that brings people together, connects them, and helps them feel relaxed and comfortable. It’s a space that makes you proud to invite guests over, and it’s a space that lets you show off your personality and style. That’s why Vancouver Kitchen Renovation wants to help you create the perfect kitchen for yourself and your family. Whether you’re interested in updating your existing kitchen or starting from scratch, we can help you turn your dream kitchen into reality. We believe kitchens aren’t just functional spaces; they bring families together, connect them, inspire creativity, and allow them to express themselves. So we strive to create designs that reflect these values, and we’re excited to share them with you.

We understand that to be successful is to stay ahead of the curve. That means staying current with the latest technology and design trends. We always want to improve our products or services without breaking the bank. That’s why we stay connected to the latest technologies of NKBA, National Kitchen and Bath Association. In addition, at Vancouver Kitchen renovation, our primary focus is providing sustainable kitchen design and renovation packages, and we believe in sustainable living. Sustainable living is a way of life in harmony with nature. It is a lifestyle which focuses on the preservation of our environment. Sustainable living is a philosophy emphasizing respect for the environment and concern for its well-being. This means we should take care of the planet and treat it as if it were our home. We should try to preserve what we have and protect it from destruction. If we do this, we will enjoy the benefits of the earth’s resources for many generations. Whether you’re planning a major remodel or adding finishing touches to your current kitchen, we’d love to discuss your project. Book your showroom consultation online.

Main Areas of Service in British Columbia:

Vancouver

North Vancouver

West Vancouver

Burnaby

Coquitlam

Squamish

Whistler

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to first install a countertop?

Before installing countertops or backsplashes, it is important to install the countertop. This will allow you measure accurately and to cut the backsplash to fit the countertop. This countertop is essential for backsplash installation.

How can you style a small white kitchen in a minimalist design?

It takes a lot of imagination to create a small white kitchen. A small white kitchen can be beautiful if you use natural materials like wood, stone and glass. White kitchens must be organized and kept clean.

Personal touches can be added to your space. This will make your kitchen feel more homey.

Do you put flooring under kitchen appliances?

You can’t ignore the importance of putting flooring under kitchen appliances. By doing this, you can make sure your countertop is at the proper height.

Which pots and pans should be placed in the kitchen’s cupboards?

Pots and saucepans should be stored in the cupboard directly above the stove. This keeps them in reach when you need them. It also makes your kitchen counters look neat and clean. A pot rack can also be a great investment to keep your pots and saucepans organized and easily accessible.

Statistics

It’s a fantastic thing about most home improvement projects: no matter the job. It often seems like the last 20% is the most difficult. (familyhandyman.com)

Keep 10 to 25 percent of List 2, depending on the budget. (familyhandyman.com)

Followed by cabinet cost, labour, and appliance costs consume 20 percent each of your budget. (hgtv.com)

In large firms, the commission charged by the GC ranges from 15 to 25 percent of the total job cost. (thespruce.com)

In the Pacific region (Alaska, California, Washington, and Oregon), according to Remodeling Magazine, that same midrange central kitchen remodel jumps to $72,513, and a major upscale kitchen remodels jumps up $11,823 from the national average to $143,333. (hgtv.com)

External Links

thespruce.com

Open Floor Plan: History, Pros and Cons

Get Kitchen Remodeling Estimates by Professionals

familyhandyman.com

Do’s and Don’ts for a DIY Subway Tile Backsplash Installation

Create an Open, Craftsman-Style Kitchen (DIY)

forbes.com

Amazing Kitchen Remodel Ideas that Will Refresh Your House

houzz.com

The Habitatilist – Project Photos & Reviews — South Orange, NJ US

Kitchen Workbook: 8 Essential Elements to a Craftsman Cookbook

How To

How Much Will Kitchen Remodeling Cost in 2022 [12 Tips for Saving Money]

How much do you need to spend on a new kitchen. The average kitchen project costs $40,000-$100,000. This will depend on how large your space is and what features are desired. Consider upgrading your home to increase its market value if you are planning on selling soon.

Here are 12 top ways to reduce costs without sacrificing quality.

Appliances for sale secondhand

DIY projects

Repurpose your old furniture

Use salvaged materials

Pros can help you with the job

Donate your stuff

Sell online

Get creative with paint colors

Go green

Please keep things simple

Make it unique

Be flexible

Helpful Resources:

35 Best Outdoor Kitchen Ideas | Kitchen Design 2023 | Kitchen Cabinet Design | Kitchen Design Ideas

Outdoor kitchen design ideas 2023. #kitchendesign2023 #kitchendesignideas #kitchendesign #kitchendesign #kitchenideas

Home Buying Update – Did We Pass Inspection?

House buying is happening! Today I’ll give an update on where we are at in the process including the dreaded home inspection!

Join me LIVE at 5pm PT

INTERIOR DESIGN RULES YOU SHOULD NOT FOLLOW | DO”S + DON”TS

INTERIOR DESIGN RULES YOU SHOULD STOP FOLLOWING | DO’S + DONT’S Interior Designer: Kristen McGowan

Thank you to Walmart for sponsoring this video! I’m

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❤️ Latest Top 3 KITCHEN TRENDS 2023 // Beautiful Kitchen Interior Design Ideas 2023

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New Kitchen Design for 2023 || Kitchen Cabinet Design || Modular Kitchen

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New Kitchen Design for 2023 || Kitchen Cabinet Design || Modular Kitchen

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Bathroom Fixtures: How to choose Right Type of Fixtures for Small Space

If you have a small bathroom, you may find it rather frustrating. You may feel like you have no room for storage and that your bathroom always looks cluttered.

The good news is that you don’t need to move home to change this. Instead, with some clever design techniques, you can open up the space and make it appear much bigger.

With that being said, below, we’re going to take you through some of the best bathroom fixture ideas for small spaces.

Why bathroom renovation is a must

If you have a small bathroom, renovating it can make the space much more functional, and it’ll feel bigger too. At the same time, clever changes can enhance the rest of your home, so you can expect a solid ROI.

Your choice of bathroom fixtures plays a massive role here. After all, without any bathroom fixtures, the space wouldn’t be usable. From embracing smart technology and clever plumbing to sleek and stylish designs, there’s a lot that needs to be considered when selecting the perfect fixtures for your new bathroom.

Different types of bathroom fixtures

To help you understand what a bathroom fixture is, let’s reveal some of the main fixtures:

Bathtubs

Faucets

Sinks

Toilets

Mirrors

Bathroom accessories

Wall cabinets

Toilet seats

Basically, a bathroom fixture is any type of permanent fixture you have in your bathroom, whether this is wired or plumbed in. Renovation work on some scale is needed to freely or easily move these fixtures. After all, it’s not like you can simply pick up a bathtub and plop it elsewhere without a second thought, is it?

How to clean bathroom fixtures

You’ll need to use a different technique depending on the fixture. For example, when cleaning your bathroom sink, a mixture of water and vinegar or a general-purpose spray cleaner will work well. If you have stubborn grime, try a paste made using water and baking soda.

For your bathroom faucet, a cleaning cloth, water, and dish soap are usually all you need. In terms of your bathtub, it all depends on the material. As fiberglass and acrylic bathtubs don’t have pores, they’re easy to wipe clean with a small amount of water and dish soap. Also, make sure you never use undiluted bleach on porcelain, as this can remove the finish, creating a rough appearance.

Finally, when cleaning your showerhead, we recommend filling a plastic bag with white vinegar and placing the showerhead inside. You can use a rubber band to secure the bag. Wait several hours and then remove the bag. Turn the shower on to flush the sediment and vinegar away.

Trends in bathroom design & how fixtures plays important role in the design

Now let’s take a look at some of the top bathroom trends and how you can emulate them in regards to your fixture choice:

Dark color palettes have really come to the fore in recent times. You can make a big statement with a black bathtub, for example. Finish off with gold touches for an ultra-luxurious look.

Sculptural elements are also becoming a real feature in designer bathrooms. We’re seeing this mainly with faucet choice. The best faucets have become more beautiful, elegant, and exciting in recent years. You can experiment with bold finishes, surprising material choices, and elongated spouts.

We must also mention spa spaces, i.e. bringing the spa to your home. Think about any element that’s going to offer extra relaxation, such as an extra deep tub or smart bathroom features.

If you like any of these bathroom design trends, we’d recommend using a bathroom design tool so that you can plan everything before your remodel to ensure you’re happy and don’t run into any issues.

4 small bathroom design ideas that everybody will love

Let’s end by giving you our top four small bathroom design ideas to help you maximize the space:

Go light and bright with your color scheme - This doesn’t mean you can’t have the bold, black bathtub, but make sure everything else is light and energizing so that you brighten the space.

Consider a corner sink - You don’t need to go for a large sink. A small corner sink can do the job and save you a lot of space.

Mirror a wall - One of the best ways to make a small bathroom look bigger is to mirror an entire wall, rather than simply hanging a mirror over your vanity. The pattern and light will reflect, and open up the space magically.

Choose a glass shower door - Time to say goodbye to your shower curtain! Instead, a glass shower door not only looks modern but makes the space appear bigger too.

Add the right fixtures to your small bathroom & notice the improvement!

We hope that this post has given you a better understanding of some of the best bathroom fixture ideas for small spaces. If you follow this guide to redesign your bathroom, you’ll have a much brighter and more welcoming space. Your bathroom will feel a lot bigger and much more enjoyable to be in.