𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐖𝐎 - the devils decision

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𝐈𝐓 𝐓𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐀 mere minutes to reach Matthew and Fisk. The sound of crashing and fists being landed led the way and she wasted no time in promptly following.

She paid no mind to her uncovered face, she had faith that Matt would come through and stop Fisk.

She was right. The scene that she saw the moment she entered the penthouse spoke a thousand words. Fisk was on his knees; vibrant red blood stained his once pristine white suit and it dripped down his face like a waterfall. Vanessa was stood on the stairs, watching on with anguish.

And Matt. He stood tall, towering over Fisk, the black of his suit a complete contrast to the white and crimson man in front of him. His blood-stained rope-covered fists pounded against Fisk's face relentlessly. The vigilante grunted and yelled with every hit; all of his pent-up anger at the man finally coming to the surface and overflowing into the room in crashing waves.

Even with the mask obscuring his face, Olivia could see the pure rage and frustration. Each hit grew harder and stronger as he continued on.

Her eyes drifted towards Vanessa who stood in her wedding dress, watching the scene unfold, watching every splatter of blood sink into her husband's suit. "Stop," Vanessa whispered and though Olivia knew Matt could hear her, he continued on.

Olivia slowly made her way over, as if she were approaching a wild animal. Matthew's fists continued to collide with the man's face, blood splattering on the pure white painting. "Matt." She whispered beneath her breath, loud enough for only him to hear. His Fist stopped midair, hanging suspended as droplets of crimson liquid dropped to the ground.

Olivia stepped closer, her eyes glued on Matt's hands that had moved; one on Fisk's neck and on his head, ready to snap. She slowly placed a hand on his shoulder and his muscles tensed beneath her touch before a sharp breath was exhaled and he loosened.

"This isn't you. Don't let him turn you into a monster; into him." Olivia muttered, her hand jolting back as the vigilante stumbled backward, onto his knees as he let out a guttural yell.

The turmoil inside of him was at a tipping point. It was time for him to decide and he couldn't lie to himself any longer; he wanted to kill Fisk, he wanted to rid the world of a monster. But he couldn't. Olivia was right; that wasn't him and becoming that person wasn't what he wanted.

Killing somebody, being the reason why life faded from another person's eyes wasn't him, it wasn't who he wanted to be and he most certainly wouldn't let Fisk turn him into that person.

From a young age he had been the one saving people, risking his life to make sure others kept theirs.

He couldn't do it.

Fisk opened his eyes, his mouth pulled back in a snarl as his eyes moved from Olivia's bare face to Matthew's covered one, "I will never stop hunting Karen Page, Foggy Nelson..." His dark gaze slowly fixated back on Olivia who didn't show any fear, "Or her. I will tell the world who you really are."

"Wilson." Vanessa pleaded, her voice breathy as she took in her husband's swollen and bloodied features.

"Vanessa, please go. Please!" Her husband yelled, but by the look of distraught on her face, she wasn't going to be leaving his side anytime soon.

Olivia watched on as Matthew slowly rose to his feet, panting heavily. His arm stretched out, pointing towards the criminal covered in blood. "You... you want me to kill you."

"No prison can keep me. You know that." Fisk's voice grew and echoed throughout the room, "Come on, kill me!"

"No! God knows I want to, but you don't get to destroy who I am!" Matthew practically screamed as blood continued to trail down his skin. "You will go back to prison, and you will live the rest of your miserable life in a cage, knowing you'll never have Vanessa, that this city rejected you. It beat you. I beat you!"

Olivia couldn't help the way her lips twitched at his words. They were full of rage and disgust and yet Olivia was... proud. He had suffered so much, and the man in front of them had brought so much misery into his life and now, now Matthew faced him, denied him of death, and stayed true to himself.

He didn't change who he was just for a lowlife such as Fisk.

Matthew dropped to his knees, bringing him face to face with Fisk as he harshly removed the material that covered his features; revealing himself to Fisk. "You'll keep my secret, and you won't harm Karen Page or Foggy Nelson. You won't go near Olivia. You won't hurt anyone else. Because if you do, I will go after your wife." Fisk snarled as Matthew's voice faded to a mere whisper. "And I will prove Vanessa ordered the murder of Agent Ray Nadeem, and like her husband, she'll spend the rest of her life in a cell."

Olivia took a breath; he was using the plan Olivia had concocted and spouted to him. Using the fact that Vanessa got Nadeem killed to keep Fisk in line. She glanced backward, towards Vanessa whose eyes had fallen. Olivia couldn't bring herself to feel even a sliver of sympathy for the woman. Had she only had been Fisk's partner, then yes, sure, perhaps a pinch of sympathy. But the woman had been the one to bring Nadeem's death; leaving his wife and son alone. That, well that didn't deserve any sympathy at all.

"I failed you. I failed you." Fisk muttered; his words obscured by the crimson liquid that still dribbled from his mouth. Everything that I tried to build for us... Vanessa... today was the happiest day of my life."

Olivia moved closer to Matt whose head was held in his hands as he crouched on the ground; leaving Vanessa to say whatever last words she had for Fisk. The wolf lowered herself behind the vigilante, a hand placed on his shoulder, "You did it."

"Poindexter-"

"He's downstairs... with a uh, a broken spine. I may make fun of your suit, but it can definitely take a punch."

Vanessa's voice drew their attention back; Olivia's eyes snapping towards the newly wedded pair, "All I wanted was you. Please..." The bride pleaded as she brought her forehead to his.

Fisk nodded, just slightly as they pulled apart, "If I agree to your demands, then..."

Matthew gripped onto the hand on his shoulder as he slowly rose, Olivia almost pulling his weight up. He stalked closer towards the criminal as he continued to speak, "You leave my wife alone. You leave Vanessa free!"

"If you keep your word." Matthew slowly spoke as he held out a hand towards the criminal covered in his own blood.

Fisk brought his own hand up and grasped ahold of Matthew's, the pair shaking on the deal that had been made. "Then it's a deal." Fisk rasped.

Olivia let out a small and inaudible breath of relief that their plan, or rather, the deal Olivia had come up with had appealed to the man. It was clear that whilst Fisk was the lowest of the low, he did care for his wife and would do anything to ensure her safety and freedom. Hopefully Vanessa wouldn't get into any life-threatening situations because if she was gone, so was the deal.

The wolf's head snapped towards the door, her sensitive ears picking up the sound of banging; the police seem to have finally made their way up which meant it was time for Olivia and Matthew to leave.

Olivia took the cue and immediately proceeded towards the stairs of the penthouse, Matthew following swiftly behind, glass crunching beneath his feet. Matthew paused on the balcony whilst Olivia continued through the gigantic hole in the wall; one that Fisk had clearly made. She halted her steps, her eyes glued to him as he nodded towards Brett who strolled through the door.

Olivia rose a hand and Brett nodded in return before he gestured for her to recover her face; just in case. Olivia smiled with a nod, thankful that they had Brett on their side throughout everything. She grasped the collar of her turtleneck, bringing it to cover her features, winking at the man as his comrades filed into the destroyed penthouse.

"Wilson Fisk, you are under arrest." One of the men dressed in all black spoke, his gun pointed towards the criminal and his doting wife.

Olivia ignored what was happening for a moment, her hearing focused on the floor below, the floor she had left a broken Poindexter. She could hear the man mutter to the officers that he couldn't move, it wasn't a surprise really, she had broken his spine and from the slur in his words, his jaw wasn't doing to hot either.

"Detective," Olivia called out, each head in the room snapping to her, and Brett quickly told his men to lower their guns. "The man who has been pretending to be daredevil is in the ballroom, your men have found him. Make sure that the pair of them-" she glanced behind Brett, her sharp whiskey eyes latching on to Fisk, "Never see the light of day."

Mahoney nodded and Olivia smiled beneath the material that covered her mouth. She knew Brett would do exactly that, she expected nothing less. Mahoney looked over his shoulder, a look of disgust thrown towards the man in the red and white suit, "Oh, I will. And that man downstairs-" Brett continued, his eyes gaze turning towards his men, "-that's not daredevil."

An officer stepped forward, "How do you know?"

Brett smirked at the man before twisting his body to face the two on the balcony above; Olivia had already disappeared and all they could see was Matthew's back, "Because he is."

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Blue and red lights illuminated the night and the sound clamoring of crowds being escorted away from the hotel filled the air as the two who had finally put an end to Wilson Fisk and Benjamin Poindexter were perched on the building next door.

Matt's position was very spider-man-esc, but Olivia simply shrugged and had joined his side, her legs crossed beneath her as she stared down at the crowd.

Olivia and Matt, though they hadn't spoken a word about it, both needed to confirm that Fisk was in the police's clutches and stuffed into a car, the lovely sound of a siren seeing him off. Olivia knew it was stupid and petty but hell, if Matthew damn Murdock didn't deserve some petty, then who did? And after the events Olivia had been through, hell yeah, she deserved some petty too; she wanted to see the look of heartbreak on Fisk's face as he was pulled away from the one he loved.

Wilson Fisk had brought that look of sheer heartbreak to so many people's faces as he killed and threatened his way to the top. So many people no longer had family members or friends; one less place at the table would be set around the holidays when family and friends were celebrated.

All because of Fisk.

Poindexter came out on a stretcher, he was paralyzed. Olivia had shattered his spine to the point of no return. Even blocks away they could hear his aggravated and pained yells that somehow managed to slip past his lopsided mouth whilst blood tumbled from his split lip and wounded knuckles.

Olivia tilted her head as the vehicle he was placed in slammed its door shut, his screams and cries still echoing down the busy street. Matthew copied her action as his eyes narrowed beneath his mask; he hadn't exactly taken in the words Olivia had spoken in the penthouse; his mind had been elsewhere, and rightfully so. But he could remember that his girlfriend had told him she had taken care of the man. He was alive, he was breathing and he was going to hell; that's all that mattered.

Olivia's eyes narrowed on agent Hattley as the woman was almost dragged out of the building; she too would be put away for her involvement, her crimes.

Even from where they were sat, Olivia could see the sheer relief light up Foggy and Karen's faces as they caught sight of a very alive Fisk being escorted out, behind his wife. "He's alive." Foggy breathed. That meant that his closest and dearest friend had chosen the right path, the harder path, but the right one.

Karen let out a sigh, the weight disappearing from her shoulders, "Thank God."

"I don't doubt that my lovely niece played a part in that," Peter muttered; pride evident in his voice as he pushed through the crowd and joined the two, Derek at his side.

"Knowing Olivia?" Derek chuckled, "Of course she did."

Vanessa trailed out in handcuffs, a police officer clutching her arm as he guided the woman towards his vehicle. The blood on her dress was vibrant, even under the night sky and her stoic face faded into sadness as she threw a glance over her shoulder and towards her blood ridden husband.

Fisk was pulled out of the building in a similar manner, handcuffs clasped around his wrists, Brett Mahoney had a firm grip on the man and a fellow officer held the criminal's other arm, many more officers following behind. Everyone knew what he had done; thanks to Nadeem's message, and now nobody was going to underestimate the criminal.

His eyes caught Vanessa's as she slowly seated herself inside the police car, "Please, give me a moment to say goodbye to my wife."

Olivia silently prayed that Brett wouldn't allow the couple to say their final goodbyes; they didn't deserve it. And Mahoney did not disappoint, his lip curled upwards in anger, "Did you give one to Ray Nadeem?"

"Please." The pleaded as he struggled against Mahoney's grasp. He let out a guttural scream as the officers forced the criminal inside of a police car, one separate from his new wife.

Olivia's gaze finally tore away from the scene that had unfolded, satisfied that the couple had gotten what they deserved. Her shoulders felt lighter and she finally realized that it was over; they had taken down the Hand and had almost immediately been thrust into Fisk's world of horror. But they were done. They won and the city was free, they were free.

Her eyes softened and a light breath escaped her as she refocused her attention on her family, Foggy and Karen. "They should be here," Foggy spoke as he took in the scene around him. His friends had taken them down. A man that had tormented Matthew's life for far too long had finally been taken down; he deserved to be there and as for Olivia; the wolf who stayed behind to help a man she barely knew, she deserved to be there too.

Peter scoffed in amusement as he clapped a heavy hand on Foggy's shoulder, the poor attorney tipping towards the former psychopath as the weight almost dragged him down, "They are here."

"What? Where?" the attorney questioned, his head whipping to and fro.

Derek rose his head towards where Olivia and Matthew were perched, a proud smile on his face that he knew his little sister could see, "Right there." he nodded.

Olivia blinked, her eyes illuminating in the middle of the dark night, allowing Foggy and Karen to see exactly where they were.

Foggy grinned and shoved his hands inside his pockets as Karen rested her head on his shoulder, her eyes glued to the small yet vibrant blue dots that broke through the darkness. "Nice job you two..." Foggy praised, his voice full of admiration, "But just so you know, sitting on a roof and watching us? Kinda creepy." he chuckled, the other three around him joining in.

Peter snorted, his eye's alight with mirth as he turned to the blonde attorney, "Olivia said-" he cleared his throat, the childishness breaking through at full force as he rose his voice into a higher pitch that definitely sounded nothing like his niece, "So sue me."

Foggy tore his amused gaze from Olivia's... weird uncle, his eyes latching back onto the blue specks on the roof, "Stalking? Oh, I just might."

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On the roof that towered over the busy street, Olivia and Matthew -despite the expected brooding look that one would think would be on the vigilante's face- chuckled away, their ears had tuned in to the conversation the four below were having, poking fun at the saviors of the city as if nothing had changed.

Olivia lowered the material that covered her mouth, despite the cool air that wrapped around the pair, her own heavy breaths were heating her up. The smile on her face grew fonder as she watched her family exchange laughter, her gaze turned to Matt whose lips were pulled up, in a small smile of his own. "Honestly? I never expected that Foggy and Peter would seem like friends."

Matt chuckled as he nodded his head; he agreed, Peter was very much like Olivia. He was just more sarcastic, arrogant, and... well he was a character. "Foggy has an uncanny ability to get along with everyone."

"Well obviously, he's friends with you." The wolf teased as she stood from her position, jumping off the ledge they were perched and, annoyingly, into a puddle on the roof.

Matthew joined her as he slipped his mask from his face, his hair sticking up in every direction, "Thank you."

Olivia grinned, her hand reaching up to smooth down his hair that was still damp with sweat. Her hands trailed down the sides of his face and stopped at the base of his neck, a thumb rubbing the pulse that pounded beneath his skin.

He leaned into her touch. The man that had let the devil out had beaten a man almost to death was now nothing but putty in her hands. The small smile grew into a grin when the wolf illuminated her eyes and allowed him to see something other than fire; the blue, the water that doused the fire, and shone in the dark. He brought a hand to her cheek, pulling her forward as he whispered against her lips, "I love you."

The wolf smiled against him as she muttered those same, heartfelt words back, "I love you too... and Matt?"

The vigilante pulled back, just slightly, their breaths still mingling, "What is it."

"I'm... I'm proud of you too."

"Thank you for being there. I- I'm not sure what I would have done if you hadn't of..." He cleared his throat, almost in shame, "...snapped me out of it."

She brought their faces closer together as she spoke against his swollen lips once more, voice softer than he had ever heard. "I'll always be here."

That statement, it was spoken so gently and yet the meaning behind it was enormous, and they both knew it. All Matthew had ever wanted, craved, was someone to be by his side, always. And when she had spoken the words he had always wanted to hear; her heart wasn't a beat out of tune. She was telling the truth.

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22-09-2020