Modern AU/Superheroes AU/Human AU

Poppy nervously stared at the door of the small rental house Branch now called home. Dr Austin knocked on the door as the outside lights suddenly flickered rapidly amd repeatedly. The lights weren't even on when they arrived so she must had heard them. The thought of actually seeing Branch again formed a knot in Poppy's stomach. His anixity over the situation doubled the second he heard the door unlock from the inside.

This was it...

The moment Poppy feared to face for years...

The possibilities of how Branch would react were very vocal in the superhuman's head. Most of them were negative or would turn negative and against him real quick. Poppy was still afraid of the idea that she hating him now for what happened to her and his guilty conscious made him believe that he did deserved it. Was it just his Hero's guilt that he carried or was it actual fear of the possibilities? It was a mix of both...

The lights stopped flickering as the door opened widely but, slowly. Dr. Austin smiled as he opens his arms for a hug. The older man stood in front of the door way as Poppy was further away from it on the side. He didn't need to be able to see Branch to know that she was there. Her uncle's reaction only confirmed what he already knew.

"Uncle Tony?", a familiar voice said surprised.

" Are you going to give your favourite rich uncle a hug or not?", Dr. Austin joke.

A now fully grown and almost unrecognizable Branch came out and happily hugged her uncle like she hadn't seen him in months. It was actually only a week but,that didn't matter to them. They had a strong and unbreakable bond. Tony and Branch had gotten very close over the years after he took her away for special treatment. Tony was always the fun uncle to Branch when she was small but,now he was her aftermath hero. Without him she probably would had been locked away from the world completely with her power only turning against her.

Poppy watched two family members silently admiring their wholesome moment. Branch looked so different from how he remembered she did back in school. It wasn't like she turned out awful. It was quite the opposite actually. Branch was ,in the most simple term, beautiful. Puberty must had decided to be play more nice with her after everything that had happened. Poppy still thought that she looked cute during her awkward phrase. He wasn't looking his best during his either.

With the happiest smile still on her face, Branch broke the hug. Her uncle visits always made her days better. Even though the checkups at her house weren't needed she still appreciated him. Then Branch finally turned her attention away her uncle and noticed her other guest. Not knowing what to do,Poppy flashed her a friendly and innovation smile. Branch's smile however faded away as she backed up a couple steps away from him. She didn't take her eyes off who she believed could possibly be a dangerous person. A threat...

Her eyes told Poppy everything he needed to know. It was clear that she didn't recognize him either. Her reaction was a little disheartening to Poppy since he was afraid that she would want nothing to do with him but, why would automatically welcome a stranger into her life? What could he say to help her remember him? His mind immediately went blank as he felt like he had completely lost his ability to talk in that moment. Branch turned back to Dr. Austin with a nervous smile and gave her old friend the not very trusting side eye before she started talking again.

" Why did bring some stranger to my house? You how I feel about other people knowing where I live. ", Branch whispered unhappily.

" Do you really think that me, of all people, would bring an kidnapper straight to your doorstep?", Tony asked rhetorically.

Poppy could hear everything Branch said. The second side eye that she shot at him only continued to clarified how she felt about strangers. Branch wasn't a people person anymore and that was no surprise when you consider the fact that past trauma doesn't just magically disappear after years of therapy and care. The lights above Branch's head started flickering again as she continued to voice her discomfort. All the younger man could hope for was that Tony could smooth everything over cause there was no way Poppy could do that now by himself!

" Listen,Branch. The man you deem a 'stranger' isn't actually a stranger...", Tony tried to explain being as gentle as possible.

" What is that suppose to mean? I don't even know who he is!", Branch whispered.

Then with a few simple words there was a complete shift in Branch's demeanour. It was almost like her whole world had just paused. The subtle disbelief and shock became very vocal in her widen eyes as she slowly turned her head back to her child best friend. All of her developed from truama cautious nature had vanished. Poppy wasn't sure if her reaction was leading to something good or bad but, he mentally prepared himself anyway to get his heart ripped out of his chest.

" Poppy?", Branch said softly and calmly.

"Hey Branch...", Poppy replied softly and shyly.

Poppy couldn't discribe how warm and fuzzy he felt over her remembering him. All of his nervousness seemed to vanished as his old friend fondly smiled at him just like she used to. He missed her smile, her personality, her dry sense of humour, her voice and her presence. He missed having her in his life. Branch missed him just as much as he missed her. She was just as happy to see him again too... Poppy couldn't help but,smile back the same way.

Several minutes later, Dr. Austin had gone back to his laboratory to sort out an emergency leaving Poppy completely alone with Branch. Normally Branch would be against the idea of having someone who her uncle brought over staying but,since it was Poppy she didn't mind. He was the exception for good reasons. The trust between Poppy and Branch had never disappeared during their time apart but, they still had a lot to catch up on. Letters only give an selective preview into someone's life. Never the full story.

The surprise guest silently watched as his host carefully slipped rubber gloves on. She carefully picked up her kettle and pours the hot water into two cups of tea. The kettle was made of plastic but,Branch still didn't fully trust herself with most of her kitchen appliances. Her inner electricity could still easily cause objects to overload and break from minutes into seconds.

A part of Poppy still couldn't believe that his best friend from high school was actually here with him. He sat at the island as his thoughts had their own conversation. He couldn't stop it from happening. Several certain questions just refused to let go of the spotlight. Poppy was too lost in them at this point to notice anything going on around him.

When did Branch move out to be on her own? How long has she been staying here? Nobody had mentioned any of it to him. Poppy knew that she was doing fine but,he still had no idea that she was declared ready to be on her own. The way Dr. Austin talked about her was kind of misleading to a degree sometimes. Then again Poppy never asked for full in depth details most of the time. It was usually questions about whether or not she was being taken care of well or how she was doing,which would be followed by extra questions if new information were presented. Maybe Poppy needed to learn how to ask more important questions better...

" Poppy? Poppy. Poppy... ", Branch's voice echoed.

It took a moment but,she was rewarded with Poppy's delayed reaction. He finally snapped back into reality only to see Branch awkwardly trying to get his attention while trying to think of a better way to do it. Her upper body was leaning forward as the unsureness of what to do was evidently written on her face. Now they were face to face. Poppy just didn't say anything as he slowly realized what had happened. Branch slowly moved back out of his personal space still feeling awkward after she realized that he was back in the room mentally.

' Yeah... What a great way to start a conversation...', Poppy thought sarcastically to himself.

Then before either of the two could say anything somebody just opened the door letting themselves in. It wasn't very loud but, it still got an subtle negative reaction from Branch. Poppy noticed the shift from awkwardness to fearful and stiff in seconds but,then it all melted away as another familiar voice joined the chat.

"Yo Branch! It's me,Darnell. Sorry about suddenly coming in like this but,girl, I really need your help with something.", a woman's voice announced calmly and apologetically.

That's when a taller woman stepped into the kitchen. To Poppy's surprise it was none other than Coop's twin sister. Darnell was surprised to see him here too but, wasn't as surprised as he was. Branch's whole body relaxed after she had realized it was only her friend. Branch just let the whole thing slide since she knew that Darnell wouldn't come over to hurt her. If anything she would be one of the first few people to help her with any situation.

" Oh Hey Poppy. Didn't expect to see you here. Was I interrupting something important cause I could come back later?", Darnell said considerately.

" No... It's fine,Darnell... What do you need help with? ", Branch reassured.

The newest unexpected guest of Branch's home nervously chuckles not sure how to explain her situation. She somehow broke and drained her house's backup electricity the second she put it on after getting her solar panels removed to be fixed. Don't ask what happened to her solar panels. It was an result of incident nobody saw coming.

Ten minutes later...

" Wait A Minute! He knows?", Darnell exclaimed shocked.

" You actually told her?", Poppy questioned.

" Yes and No. Now are you going help me do this without getting caught or not? ", Branch replied anxiously.

The last thing Branch wanted to happen was everyone finding out about her power. The only reason why Darnell knows is cause she was a former intern at Dr. Austin's lab. Most interns weren't allowed to be involved with Branch cause it wasn't part of their role to do so but, there were a few cases where interns saw her in the testing room and would assume that she was one of the few interns who were assisting Dr. Austin with the tests. Darnell was no exception to that and did in fact talked to Branch like a co - worker when she was waiting for her stability testing to start or her uncle.

Branch never confirmed her status with her and barely talked during the early moments of her and Darnell's friendship. As time went on Branch contuined to listen to whatever her "work friend" had to say and the conversations eventually became active on both sides. Darnell didn't realize who Branch actually was until Tony needed help with his paperwork which lead to her discovering Branch's files. The former intern had never told a soul about Branch's ability and had went out her way to help her whenever her powers were flaring up in a public place. She was the distraction while Branch hid in the restroom until she had gained full control again. Episodes like that were more common than the superhuman would like to admit.

The living embodiment of electricity opened the panel of the backup making sure that the settings were correct. Then she loosened and removed a cord that was attached it out of it's place. Branch was mentally preparing herself the whole time for what she was going to do. Was it going to hurt her? Probably not but, it could break anytning electrical. The superhuman let out a deep breath as her hands began to spark electricity.

Without giving it a second thought, she held the bare wires tightly as her head shot back with her eyes litterally lighting up like a flashlight! Her dark hair lit up into whitish blue with electricity turning her ends into an open and bare power source. It was like her hair became electrical wires. The house immediately reacted to Branch's power as everything electrical turned on and the kitchen was particularly loud.

AN: Part 3 up next! 😃