𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌

❝ We both grew up, but be honest, did we ever truly change? ❞

Merritt Themelis was, to put it simply, a problem child. There were more than enough stories from her various schools about what she had done, most of which couldn't be proven but everyone knew it was her, and she wasn't exactly rushing to correct any of the rumors. But as clever of a girl as she was—it was the clever ones that people had to look out for, it was the clever ones that did the most damage—patience could only last so long, and Merritt was nearing the end of the line.

She had one last chance to redeem herself, enrolled in the last boarding school in the country with the strict instructions to fix her act, lest she be sent overseas to have a school fix her act for her; it seemed that a school for troubled girls wasn't only in the movies like she had thought. But Merritt wasn't fazed, sauntering into the school with one goal in mind: to go out with a bang.

But it soon became clear that her magnum opus wouldn't be committed on her own, Merritt finding herself an unlikely ally in her straight laced withdrawn roommate, Hope van Dyne. Together, they were Hope and Merritt, a force to be reckoned with amongst the hallowed halls, protecting their fellow classmates and enacting justice upon those whom the system overlooked. A warped Robin Hood duo, they floated amongst the shining stars, endless and unstoppable.

Then eighteen years later, Merritt was doing well for herself. The PA and PR for a chemical company based in Washington, she seemed to have mellowed out. In control of not only her life, but of others', she was living the dream, happy with her friends-with-benefits relationship with her best friend and company secretary, and absolute lack of communication with her family, there was nothing more that she could ask for, at least nothing that wasn't material.

But when Hope van Dyne appeared out of the blue asking for her help, Merritt realized that there was only so much change a person could go through before winding up in the exact same place.

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𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐓

madeline petsch as young!merritt themelis

❝ major offense, but I'm going to get straight A's and ruin this place ❞

kaya scoledario as young!hope van dyne

❝ I don't think you feel nothing, I think you feel everything too much ❞

bryce dallas howard as older!merritt themelis

❝ as much as it pains me to say, you know I can't resist a good plan ❞

evangeline lilly as older!hope van dyne

❝ nearly two decades changes people, but I didn't expect this ❞

henry golding as casey kong

❝ we're friends with benefits, as long as we keep having brunch, I'll be fine ❞

ralph fiennes as cain bowman

❝ I'm not the villain so much as I am a man with a goal that doesn't sit well with you ❞

[ + additional cast ]
anna silk as reese eastaughffe
mila kunis as eden overstreet
kirsten bell as tink tinker
hero of heroes faceclaims as respective characters
marvel actors/actresses as respective characters

○ ○ ○

𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐒

started: 02.07.19

completed: —

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄

I forgot that this story was happening, then it happened, and I'm really excited! I don't really write characters that are like, you know, trouble makers because it's kind of out of my comfort zone, but it'll be interesting to see Hope and Merritt's dynamic because they both handle authority differently and undermine it differently. And future them is gonna be super fun as well.

Also, if ya'll recognize Henry Golding from Hell's Angel, my Matt Murdock fic, don't worry, that was planned, and it'll be addressed in this story, subtly, but it will be addressed, and I'm very excited. Also, this does intertwine somewhat with my Scott Lang fic, Real World, and thusly seeps slightly into my Pepper Potts and Jane Foster fics. It's just a fun time for assistants and CEO's ya'll.

【 This takes place in my Hero of Heroes series and while you don't need to have read the other fics in the series to understand what is going on, you can if you so wish as characters from this fic may appear in others and vice versa 】

DEDICATED TO:

luminite starfragment for letting me use her layout with the fancy text at the beginning of chapters lokidyinginside brieIarson tinkertaydust daisyjohnscn latte-to-go JustSav snixandstones and whomever else I'm forgetting for being so supportive and wonderful 25/8 it really means a lot

I hope you stick around!