Cara was the gift; the baby girl that Marie Davies was finally able to buy little pink dresses for. Joseph was a military man; he drank like a fish and was rough on his boys, both strapping Stevie and mild Joey Jr., in his efforts to make them into proper men, but Cara.. Tiny Cara was dressed up and paraded around like some kind of cupcake, nearly toppling over on itself with all the frosting piled on top. Her mother would later chalk it up to Southern formality, but Stevie and Joey weren’t nearly as impressed with their new sister as the old lady next door, nor their friends’ mothers. Cara-Leigh Davies was a charming, loud-mouthed, pink-clad toddler, but she was their sister. Wholly and entirely. It was a given that instantly, they became her protectors, whether they'd liked it -- or even were remotely prepared for it -- or not.
Stevie and Joey did more than their share; they shielded her from their father’s gruff, aggressive manner; instead of Joe Sr.'s full gusto, Cara was blessed with his sheer indifference and emotional disconnection from his daughter. (Stevie spoke about this strain on the family even less than Joey, and it's a kind of allyship that Cara holds dear to this day.. But back to the story, shall we?)
The boys rolled their eyes at their mother’s ridiculous doting upon their sister -- a strange supplement for the lack of attention or acknowledgement she was receiving from their father -- and instead, Cara was chided for not being ladylike enough. Straighten up. Don't wear that shirt. Where are your nicer earrings? Don't crack your knuckles! There wasn't such a thing as a debutante ball -- there was a modest cotillion -- but if such a formal opportunity had presented itself to the Davies family? Marie would've been the first one in line to forge Cara's name, 'forge' being the key word. That said, Cara would rather climb a tree, or ride her bike.. And that was part of the perceived problem.
Cara had dropped the -Leigh (had you noticed?) as soon as she’d reached the fifth grade, and a detour wedged itself into her life during her junior year of high-school. Stevie was away at boot camp and Joe (he’d dropped the -y at a similar point) was working at a small architecture firm nearby when their father’d said it.. Plain as day. Cara was smart. Her two-year-long streak of honor-roll performance was decent.. For a girl. Wasn't she applying to a state school? Aiming low to prevent disappointment? She'd never survive, far away at some university. Marie stared nervously down into her casserole, and Joe Sr. hadn’t even blinked. Daughters and sons were different, he’d always said. It's different. It's so different. Daughters were delicate, quiet, pretty, and fragile while his sons were rough and tumble. Boys were the better, his were smarter and more capable -- he'd choose them every time if he’d have his pick. Cara, forever with her eyes on the win (thanks to her brothers), was -- predictably -- devastated.
While she’d eventually come to terms with the bitter feelings of inadequacy and bury herself into gender studies electives, that moment would become a driving force behind Cara’s ambition. She played varsity sports (track and field, gymnastics, and softball -- only after a heated debate about why she couldn’t play on the boys’ baseball team), excelled in her advanced placement courses, and found that she’d enjoyed all of it. She didn't know what it was like to slack off. Cara thrived under pressure, and found herself applying to some of the most rigorous academic programs and colleges in the country not out of spite, but because it was the only option. Her family -- Joe Sr.'s sexism aside -- couldn’t afford to send her away to school.. It was purely on Cara to earn her way through. She had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Life was throwing her hit after hit, and it was almost as if she'd used the momentum to launch herself forward.
Cara fought her way through Stanford's undergraduate physics program on a scholarship, taking full advantage of living far away from home -- sharing an apartment with three other girls. There were parties and the like, but Cara found herself spending more nights at the library than not. She was a bookworm, and a favorite of all her professors. When one degree wasn’t enough, and three roommates were too many, she moved into an apartment of her own near campus, and accepted as position with her university as a teachers’ aid. Joe Sr. had little to say at this point, insisting that Cara was a good kid who got good things in life because of hard work and timing. It was true, but the wound was scarred over. Cara had determined her own course, had built a life independent of her family on her sheer force of will.
It was in those years that Cara went from bookish work-horse into something more. Like most college students, she had her flings (the kind that will and won’t be mentioned at ‘for old times’ sake’ dinners), set off her share of smoke alarms in the name of casseroles-like-mom-made gone wrong.. And experienced her own version of rock bottom. She’s reticent to talk about the amount of alcohol that she consumed in the later, quieter, lonelier portion of her graduate studies/while pursuing her MS -- dealing with the untimely death of Marie had something to do with it; Cara still has a hard time labeling a period like that as alcoholism -- she was functional, after all -- but she still keeps her sobriety chip(s) in her side table drawer.
More recently, Cara purchased a home in San Francisco -- still across the country from her family (something her brothers disapprove of, but often skirt in conversation) -- and is teaching part-time while she continues to pursue her doctorate in applied and engineering physics. Just as rough-and-tumble as the boys that’d been more of an influence on her than her own father, Cara consults and researches specifically with the top aeronautics professionals in the area. She’s the happiest she’s ever been when she’s solving g-force calculations, teaching classes at the university (and at her local Crossfit gym) and listening to No Doubt after hours in her office. Correction, she’s the happiest she’s ever been when curled on the couch watching The Empire Strikes Back.. But work is a close second.
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY, PHYSICS w/spc. in QUANTUM MECHANICS (STANFORD, 2019 - SCL)
MASTERS' OF SCIENCE, ASTROPHYSICS (STANFORD, 2014 - CL)
INTERNSHIP (RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, WARREN AVIATION, DUR. 10 MONTHS)
BACHELORS' OF SCIENCE, APPLIED MATHEMATICS & ASTRONOMY (STANFORD, 2010 - MCL)
+ likes: sunlight, blueberries, meal prep, puppies, high-powered telescopes, rothys, alphabetized research materials, socialism, new car smell, sushi, non-alcoholic margaritas, politics, quasars up close, flight, fleece blankets, stretching, ray bradbury, feminist literature, honesty, new sneakers, star wars anything.
- dislikes: cats, 404 errors, grape-flavoring, failure, The Patriarchy, the first Ms. Marvel uniform and related: thigh-high boots (better for show, not so much for utility), blow-dryers, chipped nail polish, anti-vaxxers, star trek
CAROL DANVERS, otherwise known as CAPTAIN MARVEL (and/or MS. MARVEL, BINARY, WARBIRD, AND CAR-ELL), is a half-human, half-Kree warrior. As a result of being bombarded with the radiation of a Kree piece of machinery, Carol's latent alien nature was awakened, and manifested after a violent assault from an enemy soldier. In the years following, her true nature was revealed: Carol Danvers was a human imbued with alien power beyond that of any who had come before her.Over the years, and through several cycles of consciousness and not, Carol has adopted several different incarnations and degrees of strength, but her most prominent to date is that of Captain Marvel; an energy-absorbing, photon-blasting, pilot-turned-costumed-superhero. Carol has had her fair share of struggles, both human and super. She's struggled with things like ego, death, alcoholism, and feelings of inadequacy or isolation among her peers. Still, she emerges as one of the most righteous members of the superhero zeitgeist, choosing to take her struggles and use them to propel her forward.. Fittingly enough. (More here)
CANON POINT: Carol is taken from Earth-616 canon, including the 2018 origin reboot. Any major adjustments made to Carol by the MCU will be considered and noted here in 2019 if necessary.
↳ master pilot
↳ master combatant
↳ multilingual
↳ talented journalist
↳ contaminant immunity
↳ energy absorption
↳ energy manipulation
↳ photonic blasts
↳ regenerative healing factor & healing
↳ minor molecular control
↳ energy construct creation
↳ self-sustenance
↳ superhuman stamina
↳ dynamic durability
↳ superhuman agility
↳ superhuman reflexes
Marie Davies, deceased.
Cara's mother; died of cancer when Cara was pursuing her masters' degree. A few years out, and the family's coping.
sgt. joseph davies, sr.
Cara's father; emotionally distant and a relationship she's been working on repairing. A staunch conservative, set in his ways, and less than receptive to anyone suggesting change, it's safe to say that it's been a challenge for her at best.
Steven 'Stevie' Davies.
Cara's oldest brother. Lives in Canada. Doesn't apologize, wears lots of plaid. Travels quite a bit, fantastic hugger, isn't great at staying in touch.
Joseph Davies, Jr.
Cara's second-oldest brother, twice as likely to post thirst-trap photos. Lives in Miami. Ladies' man, the one their mother said to keep an eye on.
Wyatt Wu, Iron Man.
Ex. It was amicable, but not painless. Dated for over a year and share a dog, Noodles, and a flerken-cat. Yes, it's Chewie.
Lola Daniels, Storm.
A consistently warm presence in Cara's life, Lo offers support when it's needed and receives it when it's given.
Penny Dupree, Wonder Woman.
Found sister, ally, target of the 2020 hack; a move that was designed to destroy a life, but ended up bringing them together.
Lou Hennessy, Wolverine.
Her partner from lifetimes ago, an ex in their actual lives, they're solid. Family, but not family.
Molly Patton, Madelyne Pryor.
Chosen family, badass mom who once told Cara off for telling her son, Gryffin, Skrull stories.
Max Reilly, Spider-Man.
There's some work to do here. A friendship soured, by Cara's own negligence. She's trying.
Nora Saylor, Supergirl.
The "Other" Danvers. Friends by choice, almost-franchise-counterparts by chance.
Zuri Prins, Shuri.
Grew close through mutual connections, gave each other grace through dark spots.
✨ at sixteen years old, brought a case to her local board of education, citing title ix violations when she wasn't allowed to play baseball, and a softball team wasn't provided at her high school. the district ended up providing 'opportunities' for girls to participate in sports commensurate to the available sports for boys.
✨ moved out to california upon graduating high school, and upon receiving a full scholarship to stanford university.
✨ minored in women's history and gender studies; outspoken feminist and travels to washington dc for the women's march on washington. related: volunteers yearly at voter registration drives.
✨ hates cats. her grandma bets had a vastly unfriendly calico that cara had been stuffed into playrooms with for years. that calico disliked cara just as much as she disliked it. to this day, thinks cats are standoffish and unpleasant. flerkens are exceptions.
✨ was entered into pageants as a child and pre-teen. had a cotillion. she won't ever tell you about that voluntarily, but there was a glittery dress involved. cara did win one or two titles in the atlanta area, and video of such is hidden deep in archives somewhere. thanks, mom.
✨ considers herself formerly estranged from her father; their belief systems do not align. cara is in better communication with her older brothers, joey (currently in miami) and steve (currently in vancouver, canada).
✨ has been sober for approximately five years; doesn't celebrate the occasion anymore, but attended AA meetings until approximately two years ago. she was a whiskey girl back in the day.
✨ obtained her legal private pilot's license.
✨ taught as a physics professor at stanford university, her alma mater. in april 2019, upon receiving her doctorate, cara was offered a chief research position at a private research and development company. she accepted the position on a project-by-project basis and wrapped up her career as an educator.
✨ after the reality stone was recovered from the black hole in which she buried it (fall 2019), cara spent months in both deep depression and outer space trying to track its location. carol danvers'd leaned HEAVILY into binary status, severing many ties with her earthly friends and loved ones during this time. cara is left to make these amends and recover.
✨ in january 2020, cara was exposed as captain marvel due to a technology hack, and her secret identity was outed to the public. due to pre- and large-standing popularity, the reception has been evenly split between supporters and 'send her back to space'-ers.
✨ moved out to california upon graduating high school, and upon receiving a full scholarship to stanford university.
✨ minored in women's history and gender studies; outspoken feminist and travels to washington dc for the women's march on washington. related: volunteers yearly at voter registration drives.
✨ hates cats. her grandma bets had a vastly unfriendly calico that cara had been stuffed into playrooms with for years. that calico disliked cara just as much as she disliked it. to this day, thinks cats are standoffish and unpleasant. flerkens are exceptions.
✨ was entered into pageants as a child and pre-teen. had a cotillion. she won't ever tell you about that voluntarily, but there was a glittery dress involved. cara did win one or two titles in the atlanta area, and video of such is hidden deep in archives somewhere. thanks, mom.
✨ considers herself formerly estranged from her father; their belief systems do not align. cara is in better communication with her older brothers, joey (currently in miami) and steve (currently in vancouver, canada).
✨ has been sober for approximately five years; doesn't celebrate the occasion anymore, but attended AA meetings until approximately two years ago. she was a whiskey girl back in the day.
✨ obtained her legal private pilot's license.
✨ taught as a physics professor at stanford university, her alma mater. in april 2019, upon receiving her doctorate, cara was offered a chief research position at a private research and development company. she accepted the position on a project-by-project basis and wrapped up her career as an educator.
✨ after the reality stone was recovered from the black hole in which she buried it (fall 2019), cara spent months in both deep depression and outer space trying to track its location. carol danvers'd leaned HEAVILY into binary status, severing many ties with her earthly friends and loved ones during this time. cara is left to make these amends and recover.
✨ in january 2020, cara was exposed as captain marvel due to a technology hack, and her secret identity was outed to the public. due to pre- and large-standing popularity, the reception has been evenly split between supporters and 'send her back to space'-ers.