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"She's literally so fucking scary, like I'm so terrified of her," Cindy tells Shuri and Bucky regarding Pearl.
"Because she blood bends?" He asked.
"No, don't be stupid, her blood-bending is nothing!" She emphasizes, "she's violent still outside of that!"
But when the said woman called out on her, carrying a tray with bowls of fruits, Cindy breaks into a huge smile.
"I've got cherries and kiwis!" Pearl says as Cindy walks to her.
Shuri and Bucky looks at each other, "she just said she's terrified of her."
She chuckles, watching as the bloodbender got her fellow agents to try the fruits she and apparently Sword Master prepared. She notices how genuine her smile is and how delighted they are with her. Shuri briefly thinks if this is what's endearing about her ally's sister to the point her bloodbending is nothing on the list she's supposed to be scary with.
"What do you think about her?"
Shuri, startled, "I'm still really not sure, you?"
"You're unsure because she's your ally's sister?"
"It's not that, tsk." She nudges him when he chuckles.
They watch the agents in silence. The Hulk teased her about something and she frowns to the Protector who assured her the Hulk is just jealous. Pearl agreed and everyone also did, leaving the Hulk sighing.
"She's spoiled, huh." Bucky points out.
"If only you see how much Namor spoils her."
"Like, what? Like you and T'challa?"
Shuri glares at him, not because of the mention of her late brother she misses every waking day, but because he's also totlally correct.
"So, I'm right," he concludes.
"Wait, so you can do arnis without weapons?" Sam asks before she and Lin Lie could start practicing.
"Yes?" She answers, "weaponry, especially swords or blades, are just extensions of you."
He didn't say anything more when she picked a dagger.
"Seriously?" Lie asks.
She stomps her feet, "I wanna try something!" He and her fellow agents flinched at her response.
"Alright, alright…" Lie relents, "wait, okay, now I wanna try it too." Pearl lets him choose from her daggers and once they're all settled, they started.
Sam and Bucky could only look at each other as the practice progresses because of how aggressive the two are in fighting, but it also seem like they're both in a dance of some sort.
When Lie was able to swat her dagger away, Pearl scowls and grunts.
"Man, I knew that swords are your extensions, but goddamn." Sam tells Bucky, watching as Pearl's fists open and close at will, accordingly to how she would've used her dagger.
"Bro, teach me that move."
Pearl pauses, "this?" She enacts grabbing his wrist and punching his fist open.
"No, before that."
"Ah!" She starts demonstrating.
Bucky looks to the agents, "so you guys just pause?"
"Pearl mostly does and because she demands it too." Isaac answers.
"One time I told her it could wait after we practice, she threwatened to dry the beach if we won't stop for her ASAP." Shangchi tells them.
"She's always like that?" Sam asks.
"When she wants to." Amadeus shrugs like it's the most casual thing ever, and because there's meat behind her words. The duel continues and when Pearl was about to fall, she bended her own blood to be able to stand again.
"That's fucking cheating!" Lie pointed out, laughing.
"What did she do?" Ling, who just got into the venue, asks.
Pearl grins at her, "I bended my own blood."
"You can't have reflex on that but your bending did?" Cindy asks and Pearl nods like it's the most obvious thing, "okay…"
"I want swords now." She tells Lie who just agrees.
"So, everybody just says yes to her?" Bucky asks and they all nod, making him sigh. When Lie hands her her Kampilan, she smiles at the agents who laugh at her reaction.
"She's so adorable."
"So cute."
"Look at her, what a baby."
Sam and Bucky just look at each other, "this is after the fact she blood bended herself."
When their swords clashed, the two of them look at each other in awe, she looks at the agents, "did you guys hear that?!"
"Loud and clear, boss!" Isaac answers and she giggles, asking Lie to do it again with her. When they did, she chuckles like a kid.
Ling scoffs, "like she doesn't use it to behead."
"Excuse me?" Sam asks.
"Like she doesn't use it to behead." Ling repeats like it's the most casual thing in the world.
"She beheads?" Bucky clarifies.
Ling never looked more confused, "that has always been the purpose of her Kampilan." Luna and the others just nodded in agreement.
"You guys aren't afraid she'll behead you?"
The answer came when Pearl shrieks, "when I'm about to swing, you fucking duck!" She faces the agents, "my sword is to hit his neck yet he just stands like a watchtower!"
Amadeus cackled with how she described Lie. Luna tells her, "he just wants to go."
"Don't put words in my mouth!" Lie tells her and they all laugh at his distress.
"I had to kick him so it won't cut off his head!" Pearl adds.
"Lie, why do you stress out Pearl?" Isaac asks and Pearl nods like a little kid.
He scoffs in disbelief, "I'm the one who was about to get killed and Pearl's feelings is what you focus on?!"
"Yes." They answered in chorus.
"Okay," he relents. Pearl giggles and they settle the fight with Pearl winning.
Shuri and the Bolts came right after, "so how was the practice?" Shuri asks.
"Do not mess with this freaking waterbender." Sam answers and they collectively look at Pearl who's drinking water with Luna brushing her hair, "and now you look innocent."
"I got tired with practice?"
"Yeah, she probably is." Ava tells him.
"This is unbelievable."
The Talokan trio arrived and Pearl became like a kid again, "kuya! I won our duel!"
Namor does that thing only to and with her, he smiles and caresses her cheek, "of course, you did."
"We did dagger and swords, I almost killed Lie with my sword!" She tells him, "but I can't have my freind's skull as a troph, you know?"
"You have plenty to be your trophy."
She beams like he just promised her a new set of luxurious gold jewelry.
Luna finishes braiding her hair, "just like what you want." She tells Pearl. The latter grins and thanks her, boasting it around her fellow agents.