A/N: Like my Doom fanfic, I have no idea where this idea came from. I just recently re-watched F4 three times in a row, so maybe that's it. That, and I'm so fond of the love/hate relationship dynamic.

Anyway, I've never read the comic, so this is based completely off of the movie. Very first venture into this fandom!

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"Six degrees of separation is the hypothesis that anyone on Earth
can be connected to any other person on the planet through a
chain of no more than six acquaintances." -Anonymous

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Crash and Burn

Chapter One: Mistaken for Strangers

"I didn't truly think it was humanly possible, but I stand corrected. Stacks of lifeless paper are capable of murder by boredom."

Kassie Rivers split another jaw-cracking yawn, placing her forehead on the thick stack in front of her, her eyes scanning wearily over the multiple packets of paper spilled out over the conference table before her. Across from her sat Susan Storm, bogged down with just as much paper work as Kassie.

Sue shot an amused glance over at her friend and colleague, and just shook her head.

"That sounds like something Johnny would say," Sue commented absently, flipping through several more pages of the packet she held in her hands.

Sue was sitting at a conference table splayed with the annual reviews of all the employees of the Genetic Research department. Sue ran the department, and at the moment, her most promising intern had her forehead resting on a stack of undocumented reviews.

At Sue's comment, Kassie's head shot up immediately, a look of mock disgust on her face.

"I've never met your brother, Sue, but from the horror stories you've shared, I'm opting to take that as an insult," Kassie sniffed mockingly.

Sue shook her head again and grinned, returning her attention to the review in her hands. And much to her own dismay, Kassie also returned to the papers in front of her.

Kassie Rivers had begun working for the Doom Corporation a year ago. She had started out as a secretary fresh out of high school, looking for an internship in science, specifically genetic research, with the degree she'd earned while taking part-time classes at university following high school. She'd been lucky enough to land a spot on the Doom team two years after graduating and, though it had taken her nearly six months to rise up in the ranks, she'd done it and was proud of the accomplishment. She did, however, plan to return to college after her yearlong internship finished up.

She worked in Genetic Research now, alongside the one friend she'd made since joining Victor von Doom's team, Sue Storm. The two women, both coffee addicts and avid New York Giants fans, had become fast friends.

"Honestly Sue, we've been going over these reviews for over four hours. Can we call it a night?" Kassie asked, and glanced at her wristwatch. It was a little after one in the morning.

"Morning," she corrected herself, shooting Sue a hopeful glance.

Sue's eyes widened. "Shoot! Is it that late already?" She looked ready to strangle someone.

"Well...not if you're going to kill me," Kassie tried to lighten the mood. "Why?"

Sue shook her head distractedly, and stood. Kassie followed suit.

"It's Johnny - he's flying in tonight from Florida," Sue explained, panic starting to set in her features. "I was supposed to meet him at the airport an hour ago!" She ran her hands through her blond hair to try and calm herself down as she grabbed her coat off of the back of her chair.

Kassie stood, also grabbing her coat. "Slow down, Sue. I'm sure Johnny got a cab or something. I'll help you get a hold of him, OK?" Kassie offered.

Sue nodded, her gaze still distant as she walked towards the door of the conference room. Kassie flicked off the lights behind the two of them, and walked towards the elevators, Sue a few feet ahead of her.

Once in the car on the way to Sue's apartment, Kassie finally felt it safe to ask her friend a few questions for clarity.

"Why is your brother flying in from Florida so late?" Kassie asked.

"He used to work for NASA," Sue replied, her eyes focused on the road as she was driving.

Kassie cringed as a thought came to her. "Used to?"

Sue nodded, and then took a deep sigh. "As of three days ago. He's a talented pilot, but after a third – incident - NASA sent him packing. I asked Victor this morning if we could place him on payroll in case any we need back up pilots for future projects, and he agreed," Sue explained.

"I'll bet he did," Kassie muttered. She loved her job, but despised her boss.

Victor von Doom may be stud of the year, but he took the cake when it came to the most suave creep in all of New York. At least, that's what Kassie thought. Everyone who worked at the company could see that he was after Sue. Everyone except Sue, of course.

"...so he caught the first flight out. He called me yesterday to confirm - I can't believe I forgot!" Sue gritted her teeth in frustration.

Kassie shrugged sympathetically, turning another block and pulled up to Sue's apartment building. Sue parked the car in the parking structure and the two jogged quickly into the building, Sue desperately hoping to find her brother magically at her apartment.

When they got to the eighth floor apartment, Sue knocked on the door. After no answer, she shot Kassie a worried look.

"I'm sure he's already in and asleep," Kassie tried to reassure Sue.

Sue smiled briefly, pulled out her key and unlocked the door; tentatively, she pushed open the door and stepped in. All the lights were off, and as Kassie walked in, she felt along the wall until she came to the lights witch. A second later the apartment was illuminated - and revealed an orderly, very vacant, apartment.

Sue let out a worried sigh, and made a beeline for the phone to call her brother.

A few minutes later she emerged from the kitchen. The look of relief on her face was hard to miss.

"Johnny's on his way?" Kassie guessed.

Sue nodded to confirm. "He said his flight was delayed an hour, but he caught a cab and is in route now."

After a quick goodbye and assurance she'd tackle the reviews again with Sue tomorrow, Kassie headed out of the building, the cold night air hitting her like a brick wall.

Pulling the coat tighter around her shoulders, she gave the doorman a half-smile as he held the door for her, and walked down a few steps to the sidewalk. She glanced in her messenger bag - the last purse she'd had was stolen and she hadn't replaced it yet - to make sure she had enough money for cab fare.

When Kassie looked up again, there was already a yellow car pulling to a stop in front of her.

The backseat door opened, and Kassie quickened her pace up to the sidewalk.

"Hold the cab, please!" She called as the passenger stepped out.

In her eagerness, she nearly collided with the man as he got out. Kassie had to look up to see his face - she was 5'4" and the guy had to be at least six feet tall. Blue eyes and a handsome, youthful face met her surprised exclamation. She stopped herself from doing a double take. He looked to be around her age, with short-cropped dark blonde hair - a contrast to Kassie's red head of hair.

He greeted her with a smile uncharacteristic for most people who had just run into strangers.

"Allow me," he said in a courteous tone, holding the door open for her.

Kassie studied the guy's face, something about his eyes looking familiar to her. She brushed off the thought and her momentary lapse when she'd first saw his face.

"Thank you," Kassie said. Thankful, yes, if not a little puzzled.

She stepped into the cab, and noticed then that the guy was wearing a black leather jacket and blue jeans with a bright yellow shirt underneath. Kassie glanced up at him once more before he gave her a slight smile, and to Kassie's eyes, it looked a little tired.

It had Kassie shaking her head, a smile also tugging at her lips, before she finally told the cab to head for her apartment on 4th and Chambers St.

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A/N: And the verdict is... : ) I'll probably move the timeline up so it starts somewhere soon before the movie does. I have no idea when the next update is...all depends on inspiration - let me know your thoughts!