I'm going to have to re-calibrate the thrusters in the left boot and replace the sonar emitters by this week-

"Perrault!!" A gravely voice suddenly shouted, startling the brunette out of her thoughts. Green eyes turned to the obese, bald man standing behind the diner's counter. Before she could say anything, he shoved a tray full of artery-clogging foods into her small hands.

"Table twelve, now!" He bellowed, spit flying onto her face. In as much as she wanted to throw the food back at his greasy mug, Amelia just spun on her heel and stomped away. She couldn't lose this job, no matter how crappy it was. Raising the heavy tray high above her head, the thin woman twist and turned through the narrow walkways of Ralph's Diner until she got to her assigned table. The young couple were both on their smartphones, completely ignoring the crying child sitting next to the mother.

"Here's your food." Amelia announced, putting on the best fake smile she could possibly muster.

"Took you long enough." The man muttered, not once looking up from his phone. Amelia tightened her fist to hold herself back while keeping the smile plastered on her face.

"Sorry about that." She apologized, placing the rest of the food on the table in record time so she wouldn't have to deal with the ungrateful bastards any longer. She was incredibly thankful that they didn't seem to notice her leave and she hoped that was the last she'd have to hear from that particular table until they got the bill.

With all her tables already eating or empty, Amelia looked around at the diner. It was definitely not one of the best places around but it was the only place near her home that was hiring. That and they only needed her in the mornings and afternoons, leaving her evenings free to do-

"Perrault!! Table sixteen!!" Her manager screeched again, causing her to flinch. She threw a quick glare at the man once more before heading toward the newly seated table. The brown-haired woman soon recognized the silhouette of her new customer and a smile suddenly graced her tired face.

"Hey there, welcome back!" She greeted the familiar woman, "Haven't seen you in a while, how ya been? You want the usual?"

---

Something was different about Stark Tower, but Steve Rogers could not figure out exactly what. Was it new lights? Or was it something with the decor? No... everything was still like he remembered it a few months back, give or take a new piece of artwork.

"Mr. Rogers? Your ID sir." A man in a dark suit and sunglasses handed the blond a thin card with his picture and name on it, "We will be escorting you momentarily. Let us just do a quick body scan."

Ah.

That's what was new.

All the security.

Tony Stark was a lot of things (mostly negative), but he was never cautious. To see this many men in suits wandering his building put up a definite red flag in Steve's mind. Maybe there would be more to this visit then Tony's recent spiral into his old ways.

Steve rode up the elevator by himself until it stopped at the top floor. Ever since his battle with Aldrich Killian that lead to the destruction of his old home and the break-up with Pepper, Tony had moved into the penthouse suite of Stark Tower and avoiding any contact with him and the rest of the Avengers. Even Bruce couldn't get a hold of Tony but rumors were circling that he was partying and sleeping around again. Any other time, Steve would have been content with leaving Tony alone, even if he didn't condone his activities. But now that SHIELD was disbanded and Fury was going into hiding to recuperate, Steve needed to reunite the old team. Or at least keep tabs on who was where. Finding out that HYDRA had sleeper agents all over SHIELD had put the Captain on edge. He knew he could trust the rest of the Avengers but did they know who they could trust outside the team?

Thankfully everyone else was welcoming to Steve's visits and had answered his message in a timely fashion. All except one. Tony's silence was expected after all that he'd been through, but Steve gave him enough time to 'mourn' all his losses. He needed Iron Man back.

The elevator finally came to a stop and the doors opened to reveal a thrashed room. It wasn't as bad as it was when Loki attacked a few months ago, but it was a close second. Various clothes were both strewn on different furniture and piled up on the floor. The mirror behind the bar was cracked and many of the liquor bottles were missing. Half of them were probably the broken glass pieces covering the floor of the piano. From where Steve stood, he could see that the couch was stained and covered in what looked like to be glitter confetti. All this trash, but no sign of the owner.

"Tony?" Steve called out as he stepped into the room. He immediately felt something slimy underneath his boot. Glancing down, he saw a pool of... something and swallowed back a gag. He stepped over the rest of the stain and began to wipe his shoe across the marble floor.

"Tony, are you here?"

→ Astrid ←

“Exit light! Entuh niiiight! Taaaake my hand! We're off to Never Neverland!”

People walking down the sidewalks, scurrying to and from work, couldn't help but to point and stare as a young woman danced in a wildly and quite ungraceful manner past them. Some laughed and pointed while a few took pictures and videos as she paused and made merry with a most excellent head bang, her long curls of blue flying about. There were some, as usual, who thought she was a few McNuggets short of a full Happy Meal and quickly scurried away as though they feared her attention would be drawn to bring them into her performance. She didn't mind. She focused solely on producing the guitar solo from her mouth as she heard it pounding in her ears from pokèball shaped headphones and fuelling her daily adrenaline. Although, her friends might argue that the hyperactive thing didn't need anything to fuel her more than simply being alive did.

She eventually moved on swinging about with her air guitar. There was an obvious and infectious air of whimsy about her that she hoped would brighten up at least one person's day. At the drop of a hat, she began belting out a new tune with an operatic voice, her gestures filled with all the bravado of her beloved icon, George Takei. “Getting to know you! Getting to know all about yoooou! Getting to like you! Getting to hope you like meee!” She paused here and there to serenade a glum passerby, tickling children who clapped and waved as the fae-like woman went on her way in a far more graceful manner.

Up ahead was a diner on the corner with the word "Ralph" in ostentatious lime green neon. She twirled blithely towards the less-than-elegant eatery as she sustained one last note before ending up at the door, kneeling down on one knee and holding her arms out, basking in the applause and cheer from behind her. She was up in an instant, turning around with a grin as she put one hand to her waist and gave a mighty bow. “You love me! You really love me!” Her eyes glazed over with forced tears for dramatic effect before she issued a lighthearted laugh and waved. She was content to stand and bask a little longer, accepting gracious tips, but the irate and rather tiny old woman in front of her would prefer that she move.

After being assaulted with an umbrella, she dodged one more blow and let the woman pass, holding the door open for her while pushing her headphones and hood down. Moss green eyes rolled as she chuckled at the angry ramblings of the elderly lady went on about the weird and disrespectful generation of today. Still, Astrid shoved the bills and change into the pockets of her jacket and proceeded to enter, finding her way to a secluded table in the back. Said table was her table. It didn't have her name on it or anything, but she liked to believe that the cushy seat had morphed to fit her well curved ass quite perfectly and rejected all other asses that were not hers. It was only her personal theory, though the seat really did curve in some spots to accommodate her perfectly.

She was quiet as she sat facing the rest of the diner. The seat had none others behind it preventing people from peeking over her shoulder to see her fiddling with a small phone-like device, sliding around files labeled with a slew of letters and hyphens and numbers. She was anxious for her latest partner, Captain Steve Rogers, to arrive so that they could quickly receive their new assignment, one that had been delivered to her directly by Director Fury. Agent Coulson was Director now, yes. Still, she knew Fury better than most, if not all, and she knew that he'd be back and he'd always have his hand in SHIELD. She would have opened the file sooner and simply debriefed the Captain en route to whatever mysterious destination their file held, but it required voice activation from both parties.

And, of course, she had the glorious task of informing Captain America that his number one fanboy wasn't dead and was now sorta his boss.

She was drawn from her fiddling and runaway train of thoughts by a female's voice, immediately looking up with a smile as she tucked away her device. “'Hello, Amelia.” Her own voice was soft with a prominent English accent. However, Amelia was one of the people who knew that her true accent was far from English, actually Colombian. She imitated Sofìa Vergara perfectly. Still, she seemed to have a different accent rolling from her tongue every time she came in, along with a different story about her origins. Many assumed she was just a pathological liar. If only they knew. Nobody would ever peg her as a secret agent. Hell, nobody who saw her passing by could imagine her so much as wearing a pantsuit, much less working for some modern Men in Black organization.

She gave a bob of her head, cerulean curls bouncing as she did. “Too long! Oh, and please add an extra steak to that order! Sixteen ounce!” Her "usual" consisted of a ten ounce medium rare steak with a large salad and mixed fruit all washed down with a glass of milk. While Ralph's didn't exactly have a classy air to it - at all - it was discrete, small, and got local farm ingredients. Astrid could get down with that. She had been a regular customer for many years and had gotten to know most of the staff past and present. Amelia was her favorite though. Even when she was irate or tired, as Astrid's well trained eyes could see she was now, she always managed a smile and an air of professionalism. “Also - I'm totes fab. As always.” Astrid was never one to be in a foul mood.

***

Tony Stark had been in nothing but a foul mood to his very core for the past few months.

He believed his life to be on track for a while now, improving with his people skills and personal issues while maintaining his superhero gig. He had been ready to settle down and pop the big question to Virginia "Pepper" Potts after he helped remove the Extremis from her body and the shrapnel from his chest. They had been through so much and she was always there. But there was a tape leaked of an after hours encounter of the sexual kind that she had with Aldritch Killian, a man that later turned out to be evil, psychotic, and tried to kill them both. He knew they were in a rut because of his anxiety attacks and nightmares from their battle with Loki... But he didn't think the rut was that deep.

Matters were only made worse when he found out that some of the SHIELD agents he employed before and after the fall of the secret organisation were actually sleeper agents for a Nazi terrorist group older than Captain America. He had managed to be sober and use the head on his shoulders long enough to have them sniffed out and arrested before buckling down on security. His new security wasn't just any security. He had hired the muscle of underground fighters and the minds of teenage and young adult hackers and engineers to bolster his numbers. Many saw it as a dumb move but he was okay with that before slipping back into the arms of the waiting centerfolds.

“Tony will be with you momentarily, Captain.”

Steve was addressed by the English accented Artificial Intelligence program that was JARVIS, its tone polite and informal, as though speaking with an old friend. Tony could hear them both but didn't want to get up from beneath the pile of sheets thrown over him and a woman whose name he couldn't remember. The only thing that made him get up was knowing that Steve wasn't going to go. The Boy Scout was extremely persistent and sometimes it was just plain annoying. He had no time or tolerance for any more lectures on moral codes and whatnot. Steve could take it all and shove it up his ass as far as Tony was concerned.

“You. Leave.”

His voice was groggy and raspy from too many drinks along with some yelling for various reasons. The dazed and sleepy blonde pouted as she woke up before being pushed rudely away from Tony. She stood with a haughty huff and stalked out. She would have grabbed clothes had she not been so drunk and burned them the previous night. She was confident that not too many people were in the garage, making it less of an embarrassment as she entered the elevator, pausing to offer Steve an enticing smile.

“What? What could you possibly want?” The bearded genius looked at Steve with blurry vision, trying to figure out which of the two moving figures was the real Steve. His head pounded as he adjusted his boxers and gave his jewels a scratch while sitting on the couch covered with clothes and paper. He normally exuded an aura of arrogance to match his words, but everything about him now made him seem more like a child fresh out of a tantrum. A hand ran through messy sex-hair brown in color as he awaited the answer, trying to stay awake long enough to listen.

Ah, she was British today.

Astrid's talent for flawlessly interchanging accents consistently fascinated Amelia. Rather, everything about the eccentric woman fascinated her. From her rotating hair colors to the lack of shame whenever she sang loudly outside the diner. Even after hours after she had left the restaurant, Amelia would still be theorizing just what exactly Astrid did for a living. She has yet to settle on one concrete theory.

“Alright, two steaks it is.” Amelia replied with a smile as she jotted down the order, “Let me go punch this in and I’ll be back to chat with you until I’m on the verge of being fired.” With that, she hurried off to the nearest computer station while almost mowing down a small child. The brunette’s excitement to interact with another human being was usually uncharacteristic of her but it wasn’t often that someone intrigued her this much. It also helped that Astrid was such a joy to speak to. Her sunny personality was rather infectious and the dingy diner always seemed to brighten up a bit whenever she came around.

If Amelia thought about it, it had been quite a while since Astrid visited. She usually stopped by once a week, maybe twice. Amelia decided she’ll add that to the list of questions she would ask the blue-haired woman. Once she typed the order into the smudged computer screen, she walked back to Astrid while keeping an eye out on her other tables with her peripheral vision. That was probably the only thing she gained out of working in this dumb. That and friendship.

“So Astrid, who’s the other steak for?” Amelia started off, a small smirk gracing her pale face, “Lunch date?”

---

Steve’s blue eyes widened in a mixture of horror and embarrassment when a naked woman emerged under all the sheets lying in the middle of the floor. It got even worse when she walked out of the room without trying the least bit to cover up. He averted his eyes away when she passed him by to get to the elevators but could see her smile from the corner of his eye. He coughed to avert attention away from his blushing cheeks and waited till he heard the ding behind him.

“Stark, you haven’t been answering any of our messages. Not mine’s, not Natasha’s, not even Bruce’s.” Steve began, “We needed to check up on you after what’s happened with SHIELD but I’m assuming you already know since you're on high alert.” He made a gesture downstairs.

“We also wanted to make sure if you were… okay.” The captain never tried to hide his distaste in Tony’s comings and goings but after New York, he knew that he could trust the man when things got tough. However, the man sitting before him in nothing but boxers was a shell of his former self. Convincing him to do just about anything was going to take a lot longer than he originally planned. And he had a meeting in half an hour.

The young woman gave her waitress a dazzling smile, the outer edges of her eyes giving a light crinkle, before she returned to her device. She made faces to herself as she sat in perfect silence, ignoring the world around her while small portraits with short amounts of data popped on the private screen. HYDRA agents, every last one. Aside from the mission she was to complete with Captain Rogers, she had been given a hit list. She had to find the HYDRA agents and capture who she could and kill who she pleased. She had a very specific kill list and she was eager to begin. Her first lead was in Syria. Unfortunately for the world, HYDRA wasn't just in the United States. They were everywhere. And they'd been passing out government secrets from all over the world to the highest bidders. The world was on the brink of disaster.

“Roadhouse?!”

She had gotten so caught up that she hadn't noticed Amelia taking a seat until the other young woman had spoken -- though young might be a stretch when talking Astrid's age. She looked up with a startled expression before giving a soft laugh and a grin. “Actually, I do have a date. His name happens to be Steve Rogers. My dad set me up with him and I don't think we have a single thing in common other than our obviously amazing physical gifts.” She did a few cheesy Vogue poses from her seat before laughing gently. “Honestly, I'll probably never see him again after this date.” Not a complete lie. They'd have their mission and soon after they'd part ways. Astrid had her own agenda and she didn't have time to be making eyes at lifesize Fourth of July Ken dolls.

---

Tony looked at Steve through blurry eyes, squinting some. There were three Captains and it took some pretty hard staring to sort them all into one. “You're a century-old virgin so, you wouldn't understand. I don't want to have people around right now unless they've got tits and are getting naked.” His voice rose some as he stood, a bit wobbly as he jabbed a finger towards the older man. It took a few moments for it to sink in, what he had said. He was wrong and he knew he was. They were misfits with fucked up pasts, all of the Avengers. He knew the story of Steve and Peggy and because he'd been keeping tabs on the old man he also knew that the soldier had been visiting the woman who stole his heart but was now fading fast.

“Look -- I'm sorry. I'm just... It's taking some time to process all of this. Two years ago I had privatized world peace. Now I'm having panic attacks, people trying to kill me, and the woman I wanted to be the mother of my children is gone. This... It's not the life I'm used to.” Tony Stark wasn't a very emotional man. He didn't like talking about feelings very much, especially his own. However, things were generally different with Steve and Bruce. He could talk to them both and knew they'd carry that conversation to their graves without judgement. “Yeah. HYDRA's been stealing a lot of my tech. We've gotten rid of all the sleeper agents, mostly. My supplies in my warehouse at the docks keep coming up short. Don't worry. I'll step up to the plate when it's time to bat.”

A wave of his hand signaled that he was finished with the conversation. Steve might be Steve but Tony still didn't like talking. He trudged towards the shower whilst scratching his head. He couldn't really remember the last time he had showered. He remembered having a brunette in the shower a few days ago... But they didn't really bathe that much. His shaggy beard suggested that it had been some time since he had exercised the use of proper hygiene. “I'll catch up with you tomorrow. And... I'm sorry about Nick.” He paused to turn around, biting the inside of his cheek. Unlike Steve, he had no clue Nick survived. “He was a dick. And really cryptic. But he meant well...” With that, he turned down a corridor and the sound of rushing water followed.

"Steve Rogers?" Amelia repeated, placing a calloused hand on her chin, "Why does that sound so familiar?" After a quick mental rundown of her known contacts, the brunette concluded that that name must have been famous for one reason or another. She had never been one to keep up with celebrity gossip or trends, even before she lost everything she owned. She only ever focused on studying and reading up whatever interested her academically. Maybe that's why she did so well when moving into a more isolated living space.

"Well whatever, I'm sure he's quite lovely if your dad set you guys up." If her dad had so much pull to get a supposed celebrity as his daughter's blind date, then Astrid must be wealthy. Or at least have amazing connections. Either way, that little tidbit of information did not do anything to help narrow down Amelia's list of theories. it might have even lengthened it if she were some rich girl doing whatever she wanted thanks to a trust fund. It was certainly a possibility.

The gravelly shout of her boss made Amelia quickly jump out of the booth. "I'll be right back." She muttered to the bluenette before rushing over to the counter where the obese man was waiting angrily. For a place that served organic food, the owner certainly didn't take a page out of that book.

---

Steve tightened his lips into a thin line as Tony unnecessarily went off on him. As much as he wanted to give a retort, he knew he had to hold back his remarks. The Tony before him now was a walking land mine. One false step and he would blow up, never allowing anyone back in ever again. The blond definitely had to be patient with dealing with the genius before him.

And just like that, Tony calmed down once he let out all his frustrations. Maybe an emotional punching bag was all he really needed. Either way, Steve's eyes softened as the dark-haired man basically laid out all his troubles to him. Tony was obviously at such a low point in his life if he was willingly expressing his emotions to him like that, but Steve made sure to keep that to himself. Instead, he made a note of what HYDRA had been taking from Stark Industries and decided to check up on that later. "Thanks, glad to know you're on board. And if you need any help finding any other sleeper agents in the company, you know who to call." Steve stated. He was about to start a long monologue about how Tony would eventually rise up from all the recent downfalls but the shorter man began to shoo him away in his normal, Tony-like way. At least he was showing some sign of improvement. Steve was going to chuckle but stopped himself when he heard Tony's sudden remark about Director Fury.

Only Natasha, Sam, Clint, and he knew the truth behind Nicholas Fury's death, or rather 'fake' death. Hell was going to break loose when Tony and the others found out they had been keeping such a big secret but he knew it was for the best. Still, Steve couldn't help but feel sick to his stomach whenever he had to lie to his comrades.

"Yeah... He did." He finally mumbled out. But it fell to deaf ears as Tony already left to take a much needed shower. Letting out a sigh, Steve readjusted his New York Yankees cap and placed his aviators back on before heading to the elevators. It only took a couple of minutes for him to get down to the first floor and out of Stark Tower to his waiting chopper. He glanced at his watch while climbing on, deciding which route would be the fastest. Either way, he was already late.

Twenty minutes later, Steve arrived at a small, somewhat dingy diner and parked his motorcycle close to the entrance. Taking a quick second to make sure he was well-disguised, he finally stepped inside. It took another moment for him to scan the entire restaurant but he soon saw a flash of blue on his left. He strode over to the corner booth where a pale, blue-haired woman sitting with a bunch of empty plates in front of her. Well, most where empty except one untouched steak that was meant for the missing patron.

"Astrid?" He guessed, catching the strange woman's attention. He still couldn't grasp the diverse fashion trends of this era but he made sure to not look as surprised as he actually was.

"Hi, sorry I'm late. I'm Steve." He introduced himself, sticking out a hand. He didn't think it was right to sit down yet until she acknowledged him, especially after he arrived way after the designated appointment time.

(Double post - Ignore!)

Astrid simply smiled at Amelia, feeling some sort of pity for the young woman as the greasy man she called a boss warbled for her presence. She shook her head and waited for both her meal and partner, eventually pulling her legs up and crossing them in her seat. With a few peering eyes directed her way she decided not to pull out anymore of her devices except her phone. She engaged in a few rather intense games of QuizUp, Candy Crush, and the newly released Captain America game. She only paused when her meal was brought to her, checking the time. He was running late. She gave him ten minutes before scarfing down her food and ordering seconds, a lone steak resting on the other side of the table.

There were a few passing glances of pity as the other patrons as they assumed she had been stood up. She was starting to wonder the same. Perhaps he had been distracted with a more important task or maybe he had even forgotten. The latter certainly wasn't good for a woman's ego. Still, she would wait and entertain herself with games and texting as though the world as they knew it wasn't crumbling all around. She was eventually interrupted again, though it was a man this time. She looked up to see Steve Rogers hiding beneath a baseball cap, lifting a brow in response to his appearance and words. She had been hiding under her hood and headphones. Still, she picked up his voice with ease over the soothing melodies of a budding Welsh pianist.

“Astrid...”

She stood and pushed back her hood along with the red and white pokèballs that were pumping sounds through her ears. Despite her hands being rather pale, her face showed her true mocha complexion; It had been ages since she had gotten an even tan. Still, she perked up with a chipper smile. She never divulged her surname to any person and she doubted that Steve, despite his good four years with S.H.I.E.L.D., knew her name. She was more or less just a myth among the ranks. A mercenary some few swear they saw handing and taking files from Fury. No, he wouldn't know her. Still, she offered a twinkling gaze before letting her fingers curl around his hand, tugging him into the seat directly next to her, making him turn towards her slightly. She removed the aviators from his face and quickly replaced them with dark black sunglasses.

Moving closer, she ducked her head close to his, giving the illusion that they were locking lips. One hand resting out of sight against his leg held a device, her fingers manipulating the images on the screen. “Word of the day, Poughkeepsie.” Her gaze flickered up towards him as the device in her hand gave a light ping. She reached out with her free hand, brushing the side of his face gently. To those looking, it would appear an affectionate gesture. In truth, she slipped a device into his ear. Waiting for the safeword, she put on her own shades to match his. Once they'd activated the device given to her by Fury, their directive would show across the shades. Astrid wasn't one to exchange pleasantries in such dire situations. She preferred to get her objectives first and have fun along the way. Still, she had to admit the handsome man before her smelled nice. Almost as nice as the sweet pea perfume she wore.

---

By the time Tony exited the shower Steve was gone. The genius finally sported a mostly clean face, still retaining his trademark mustache and beard. He wasn't feeling one hundred percent yet but he was slowly getting there. He looked into the mirror and stared into the reflection of his heterochromatic eyes that were brown around the iris, bright hazel with tints of blue and flecks of gold making up the rest as it went further outward. He could see the hurt behind them and it displeased him. This wasn't him. This was not Tony Stark. This was a shell of the man he once was but he knew that he couldn't stay this way forever. He had to recover.

He refused to let the company his father founded fall apart while he whined like a child. Shit happened. He needed to deal with it because the world needed him now more than ever. He had people depending on him. Lives were at stake and he could not afford to stand by and indulge in selfish desires because things weren't going his way. Anthony Stark was not a quitter. He gave himself a pep talk, smacking his face a few times before leaving the bathroom. He headed down the stairs, calling out to his computerized companion. “Clothes. Something snappy. Daddy's back.” He clapped his hands together as an outfit fit for... Well, Tony Stark, was presented to him. He dressed quickly, making stops around the lavish room to grab gadgets and put them into his pockets.

Tony had destroyed every last one of his suits to please Pepper, having agreed to stop being a superhero for a while so that he could be a better boyfriend and perhaps husband one day. He obviously salvaged what he could and had all the scrap remains in his personal lab within the tower, figuring that he'd need them again one day. Tony knew that once he announced that he was Iron Man there was no going back. He couldn't just retire. He ran his fingers through his recently styled hair before straightening his tie, moving towards a larger table. The table, like many he had, was transparent. Long, calloused fingers danced across it intricately to bring up floating screens of files.

Focused intently, he brought up videos. He watched as a mysterious figure darted in and out of his warehouse at various times, always leaving with some of his supplies. “The raids occur every two days around ten... The next hit should be tonight. I can get a suit up by then.” Tony clapped his hands together, the lit up screens shrinking and disappearing between his hands as he made his way out and to the elevator. Already his mind was racing as he wondered what suit to work on first. Perhaps the original... Or Igor. It was ugly but it was big and it packed one hell of a punch. He decided Tin Man would take up his attention, giving waves to the employees he saw wandering about. There were mixed expressions of surprise, relief and joy to see their boss up and about and ready to get down to business.

Their view of him was short, the man disappearing into a room that none but he and Banner had access to. The security was all biometric and any single attempt to bypass it without their finger prints, hand scans, and retinal identification would result in the potential intruder being stunned and taped to the wall. Tony was feeling a bit immature and humorous when he was designing the security measures. The metal door slid to a close behind him as he removed his jacket and set to work, clapping his hands to activate the lights while J.A.R.V.I.S. booted up the devices within the room. “Welcome home, sir.”

If he thought he had been surprised before, Steve was in for a treat when Astrid pulled off her hood to reveal voluminous blue locks framing her tanned face. He had little time to react when the seemingly petite woman pulled him down into the booth with astonishing strength. Without missing a beat, she pulled his sunglasses off only to replace it with another pair before holding him uncomfortably close. It took everything in his power to stop his cheeks from lighting up like a Christmas tree but her sweet, warm perfume made it hard to concentrate.

”Word of the day, Poughkeepsie.”

Steve was shaken out of his trance when Astrid muttered those words and snuck an earpiece into his ear in the form of a loving touch. Yeah, he felt chills go down his spine as her fingers brushed up against his cheek but he mentally shook them away for the sake of the mission. This was all an act after all; who knows what HYDRA agent had been tracking his movements. It was better to be seen as a ladies’ man than him actually doing his job. So to calm his now erratic heart rate thanks to the eccentric woman’s suave touches, he took in a deep breath. Finally, he let out a small smile and brought his arm behind Astrid, allowing it to rest on top of the booth seat.

“What do you think about visiting Poughkeepsie next month? I heard the weather's lovely around this time of the year.” Steve asked in a low, rumbling voice. He knew he sounded stupid but he had to keep up the charade.

---

Amelia was riddled with disgust as she wiped away whatever that little disease-carrying brat threw at her while she took away that last table’s dishes. She didn't even want to hypothesize what could have been that substance. Drying her hands on her apron, the brunette looked over to Astrid’s table to see how she was doing. The poor girl had to order another round of food while waiting for her blind date. Any man who would just stand up a woman should rot in hel-

Oh.

Seems like Astrid wasn't alone anymore. She had gotten real cozy with what looked like a broad-shouldered blond man in a baseball cap. She obviously didn't waste any time…

As much as she wanted to talk to Astrid a bit more, her shift had ended and Amelia needed to prepare for tonight’s activities. She quickly punched out and ran out of the cramped diner to avoid her boss yelling at her to stay much longer than she was paid to do.

It took one subway, two bus rides and five blocks until Amelia finally reached her destination. Completely ignoring the ‘No Trespassing’ sign, the brunette opened the rusty, metal chain-link fence as quickly as possible without causing an unbearable screech. After making sure the gate looked exactly as it did when she first arrived, Amelia walked along the side of large building a few moments before reaching a certain wall behind the building. She looked over both her shoulders then slid open the panel and made her way inside, hurriedly shutting the panel behind her.

The warehouse was dark and dreary with only a few rays of pale sunlight streaming through the dirt-streaked windows. Yet the minimum light was more than enough to illuminate the small space Amelia begrudgingly called her home. Everything she owned or made was covered in a thin layer of dust. There was a tiny futon and a ragged old dark green blanket resting in one corner of her living space. Surrounding her bed were dozens upon dozens of books. Most were from local libraries around the city since she could never go back to the same library thanks to her huge library fines. How she wasn't banned yet was still a mystery. There was also a bunch of plastic bags a few feet away from her bed, one holding her clothes while the other held her trash. She hated to admit that she had mixed up both bags on several different occasions.

On the opposite side of the space was her work area. Smack dab in the middle of the much messier half of her home was her make shift work station made from a couple of cinder blocks and two plywood boards. Piles of scrap metal and other materials stood on both sides and within arm's reach. Underneath the table was what looked like a cardboard box covered with a blanket similar to her sleeping blanket but with less holes.

Amelia first made her way to the plastic bags, stripping off her gaudy waitress uniform along the way and pushing it to a pile of dirty clothes sitting way off on the side of her living space. She pulled out a white tank top, some tight green cargo pants, and an over-sized black hoodie. She slipped on the new clothes while walking over to her work desk. On it was several different devices but Amelia’s focus was on the box under her desk. Pulling off the blanket revealed the empty top of the large cardboard box where a set of black boots with it’s feet covered in bulky metal wiring and black finger less gloves lined with the same metal wires. She gingerly took one glove and turned it over where a thin, circular device was stitched onto the palm. Amelia grabbed the other glove as well and placed them onto the table before pulling on the boots. Even though her left boot’s calibration was a bit tricky thanks to her last escapade, they would last the night if she got all the stuff she needed. The gloves, however, would need to be worked on before she left.

~ Amelia ~

As the word “Poughkeepsie” left the Captain's lips, their sunglasses lit up on the inside for their eyes only. Director Fury's voice entered their ears through the earpieces. “Captain Rogers. Special Agent Angel. Recently, S.H.I.E.L.D. has fallen to HYDRA's infiltration. Many agents true to S.H.I.E.L.D. have died already and those who haven't are hiding, working for Stark, or helping to rebuild our organization from the shadows. It's dangerous to be an agent now because our faces are known. I hope that, whether with the other agents or not, you will still fight for our cause. That being said, I've got one last mission for you. By the time you get this I'll be off the grid. Now. HYDRA's got roots deep down throughout SH.I.E.L.D. all across the globe. They've captured six of our Marine agents along with personnel from the Sandbox and are holding them hostage in a facility near the Sandbox. I've arranged transport to take the two of you out of New York. The jet is fueled and the coordinates are already pre-programmed. Go get those agents and bring them home... And destroy the Sandbox. Deliver them to Tony Stark.”

Images of the six agents and twenty-nine others began scrolling down their screen along with the coordinates to their jet. Alright, so it was a simple rescue and destroy mission. The woman sighed as she removed her glasses and earpiece. She kept her close distance to Steve so that her mouth could not be seen moving. “Alright, let's go ahead and get out of here. The faster we move the faster we get to those agents. It's possible that some of them might be dead already – But let's keep it optimistic. I'll meet you on the bus in twenty minutes.” She finally pulled back with a smile, giggling like a schoolgirl with a crush. “I had a really great time. I'll see you later tonight then?” She gently urged him out of the booth until they both stood. She leaned up and brushed her lips against his cheek. “Star, two-six-four-three-five if you run into any trouble.” Her lips moved against his cheek as she spoke before slowly pulling away, offering a wink. She quickly pulled out the tips from her earlier performance, leaving the crumpled dollar bills on the table amidst the food and drink before happily skipping out the door.

Unlike her companion, she hadn't brought a vehicle with her. She'd never meet new people and make proper observations of her surroundings if she was zooming around the city in a car. Still, vehicles were convenient – and pretty. She settled for walking again, disliking New York City's taxi cabs. Many of the drivers had no idea what personal boundaries were. Granted, she could be a bit invasive herself, but she was never wont to asking random strangers about their sex life. She wouldn't ask a complete stranger to babysit either. Of course, she did babysit those few instances when it was requested. That didn't mean that she didn't think the parents horribly irresponsible to be seeking babysitters from the back of taxi cabs. For all they knew, she could have been a serial killer. Well – She was. Many moons ago. But nobody would ever know about that. No, she would simply take a nice long stroll down the sidewalks and across the crosswalks until she found herself at a rundown apartment building. There was no friendly doorman to greet her, just thugs on the front steps. She waved them off as she ran inside, heading to the very top floor, last door on the left.

Her apartment was... It was exactly what you'd expect of a woman like her. It was a very open space and nothing like the dingy rest of the building. The wooden floors were well polished and various art pieces were on display against the walls and on top of pedestals. Violons, guitars, flutes and more had their shelves, book shelves stuffed full of various... Well, books. There was a giant piano in the middle of the studio, right between the kitchen and the living room area. However, that's not what she was after. She darted quickly through her apartment, packing a duffel bag along with a backpack with a few supplies and weapons before properly arming herself, concealing her weapons. She was in and out in a snap with her keys in hand and a smile on her face.

Sliding into her red Bugatti, she cranked up the sounds of Enrique Iglesias and  tore off down the road. She darted through traffic with little care for other cars, maneuvering her way around them with ease as she made straight for the outskirts of the city, hitting well over 120mph as soon as she crossed the line, taking off down a dirt road.

The ride lead down more dirt and gravel roads, passing by numerous trees. It didn't take much longer for her to reach her destination – It was a massive house set upon expansive land. Passing through the gate with proper identification was hardly time-consuming. She pulled her phone out and texted the coordinates to Steve, parking her car near the massive water fountain before boarding the large black jet that awaited them. She could have picked him up. She probably should have taken him home with her and let him use some of her gear for the mission. However, she wasn't really the type to bring home people from work these days. It wasn't that she didn't trust him – He was Captain freakin' America. She just didn't like having strangers inside her home.

She loaded herself up into the jet and immediately set to turn on the speakers, blaring a medley of 80s metal and rock while singing loudly along with the lyrics as she headbanged. A trip to the cockpit and she set the take-off timer for an hour, assuming that Steve would be there by then. The autopilot would activate and take them to the pre-entered coordinates so she had the chance to do something useful with her time. Like change clothes and draw. Standing up, she held her arms out and closed her eyes. She could feel an energy surge through her body, the glow present so bright that she could still see it through her eyelids. Opening her eyes, she checked her reflection. Her body now adorned a catsuit as white as virgin snow. It flattered her figure, an near exact replica of the one her former mentor (Natasha Romanoff) wore. With the exception of the color  – except the black belts that she wore around her waist, arms, and thighs – her belt buckle was a golden feather.

Satisfied with the transformation, she fluffed her blue locks and made her way to the Captain's cabin where she pulled out a sketchbook and pencil, placing the lead against the paper. She began with soft lines, unsure of exactly what she was drawing until she began etching a strong jaw and a soft smile. She returned that smile as she continued to draw the handsome face of her Star Spangled partner. She had gotten a clear and close look at his face, committing every detail to memory. The bright cerulean eyes, his lips that were neither too full nor too thin but probably undoubtedly as soft as his gaze, and the smooth shaven face that announced that he made time for keeping up physical appearance even when work got rough. She dazed off as she drew, her eyes glazing over as her vision went blurry from staring, her hand seeming to move of its own accord.

 

Images flickered in front of the Cap's eyes from behind the sunglasses as Director Fury's voice spoke through the ear piece Astrid had given him. He informed them of their new assignment; a rescue operation involving a large group of people that included six S.H.I.E.L.D agents. They also had to destroy the Sandbox which what Steve remembered was some sort of classified government facility. It all sounded simple enough, but he knew never to underestimate any operation. The message ended as quickly as it started and he could again see Astrid sitting incredibly close to him, her bright blue eyes staring directly into his own. Heat rose up in his cheeks once more but it disappeared in an instant when she urged him out of the booth. Her continuous giggling meant she was still keeping up the charade as she leaned over and kissed him on his reddened cheek. He almost couldn't hear the emergency code she was whispering over the sound of his rising heart beat. Thankfully Steve heard enough and stayed silent as he watched her throw some money on the table and leave out the front door.

It took Steve a few minutes to make his next decision but he finally chose to sit down and eat the cold meal Astrid had ordered for him hours ago. It was the polite thing to do after all. He finished the meal in record time then headed out to get himself ready for the upcoming mission. When HYDRA first rose back to power in S.H.I.E.L.D, Steve had to do a complete overhaul on his living quarters, having lived in a government-funded building ever since he was awaken from his frozen sleep. Luckily, Natasha found him an apartment in no time flat. It was located in a pretty safe neighborhood and had more than enough breathing room but Steve never found the time to really decorate. Even now as he entered his home later that afternoon, the few pieces of furniture he owned looked spick and span, not from cleaning but from lack of use. Steve dropped his helmet and jacket on the couch as he headed for the only room he actually used.

His bedroom was a lot messier than the rest of his apartment, only because his sheets weren't made and there were a few pieces of clothes draped over a chair. Steve made a mental note to put those away as he pushed over his large dresser with ease where a large, metal door was hidden. His fingers flew over the keypad beside the door and it soon opened to reveal his Captain America uniform and shield. He had the safe installed just a few days after he moved into the apartment and although it wasn’t the best place to keep his uniform, it was all he could muster up in such a short amount of time. And it’s not like he had a secret identity anyway.

It took him several minutes to change and pack extra clothes in a separate bag. He then strapped his signature shield onto his back and slung his bag over his shoulder before leaving his apartment a different way then he came in before and was once more driving down the streets of New York on his Harley Davidson.

The sun had begun to set by the time Steve reached an expansive estate located in the middle of nowhere. It had all the works and more; large mansion, elaborate metal gates, huge water fountain, expensive sports car, and a giant jet. Actually, the jet looked more government-funded than trust-funded. He parked his bike next to the red Bugatti and headed into the open back of the jet only to be greeted by the blaring sounds of rock music. Stepping further inside, the Cap followed the source of the music inside the cockpit where, sure enough, Astrid was residing. From the reflection on the windshield, he could see that she had changed from jeans and a jacket to a white catsuit reminiscent of Natasha’s. She didn’t seem to notice him just yet; much too engrossed with her drawings.

Steve gently set the bag down at the entryway of the cockpit before quietly walking inside. He glanced over Astrid’s shoulder once he was close enough and was surprised to see her sketching a picture of him. And a rather good one in fact.

“My chin’s a little more angular than that.” He decided to point out, a small smirk gracing his face.

---

Once nighttime fell over the New York City skyline, Amelia was more than ready to suit up and start her self-appointed mission. The gloves were repaired to its maximum efficiency levels and her boots had enough juice to reach her destination if she timed them right. Once those pieces of clothing were put into place, Amelia pulled out a pair of goggles and set of metallic earbuds from a worn out leather knapsack. She slipped them on as she walked out of the warehouse, her sight replaced with night vision. Through her goggles, she could see a few workers finally calling it a day just a few blocks over in the next warehouse as she tucked her tied up brown hair into her black hood. She waited until there were no more red bodies in her line of vision before switching to normal view. With a quick heel kick, the wires on her boots lit up and a blaze ignited underneath her soles. She shot up into the air in a large arch only to have the flames die out in a matter of seconds. Yet Amelia showed no signs of panic as she landed gracefully on a nearby roof. She kicked her heels again and the flames reignited to give her another extra boost. She repeated the process numerous times as she travelled across the rooftops of the city. When she first created her rocket boots, Amelia loved the feeling of flying through the air for a few short moments before crashing into whatever was the softest landing she could find. Her limited supplies and money made it hard to keep a steady supply of power. So she had to resort to leaping from building to building which wasn’t so bad except it took a lot longer to get to places.

It was around 10 o’clock when Amelia finally reached her destination. The brunette landed on the rooftop of the neighboring building while switching over to night vision. As expected, the lab she was scanning was filled with a lot more guards than usual. It didn’t come to much of a surprise since she had been hitting up the place several times the past few months. However, she didn’t think Tony Stark would care so much. It was just one lab out of many he owned. And he had more than enough money to spare in replacing the few parts she took. In fact, he should be grateful someone was using them to help the citizens he had neglected over his long absence. Thinking of the famous billionaire genius made her teeth grit. People given everything on a silver platter were the scum of the earth in Amelia’s eyes. But she swallowed her anger down and decided to focus on the mission at hand.

Looking over Stark Industry and it’s outlying perimeter once more, she took a few minutes to map out the best possible route before jumping off the roof. Her boots cushioned her fall inside the gated area with a short burst of flames, she sprinted down to the edge of the building while keeping a lookout for guards. The moment she was close enough, she pressed herself against the walls and stayed in the shadows while sneaking down the wall to the closet door. She stopped short of the ray of light that illuminated the first door she saw, noticing the newly installed security camera right next to the lamp. Not a problem.

Amelia lightly tapped her right knuckle covered in glove, activating the sonic emitter on wired to her glove. The circular device in her palm softly vibrated, giving off a high-pitched sound. She then aimed her palm at the lamp and simply waited. At first, nothing seemed to be happening but soon the glass of the light bulb began to vibrate with the sound. In a matter of seconds, the light shattered, washing the small area in darkness. Amelia quickly made her way to the door and pulled out a key she had stolen when she first broke into the laboratory. The key slid in with ease and she unlocked the door without much trouble.

Amelia stepped into the room while turning off her sonic emitters, not wanting to catch the attention of any guards. Luckily this door opened to the locker room where no guard dared to be in while on their rounds. She slipped out of that room and started for the main laboratory with ease, having memorized the layout of the building weeks ago. There were no guards in this hall or the next until she reached the end of the second corridor. Peeking around the next corner, she saw three guards standing in front of a set of double doors leading to the main labs. Again, nothing the brunette couldn’t handle.

Pressing her back against the wall again, she took in a deep breath before tapping the top of her glove once more. The sonic emitter vibrated more intensely than before, tickling her palm. However, she ignored the sensation and jumped out of her hiding spot with her palm facing the guards. Even with her specially made earbuds, she could still hear some of the high pitched scream coming from her hand. Thankfully it had no effect on her but she couldn’t say the same for the guards. It took only a second for the three large men to drop their weapons to cover their ears. After a few minutes, the guards dropped to their knees in agony, allowing Amelia to get closer. She walked over to the first guard and gave a swift kick to his abdomen, easily knocking him out. She did the same thing to the other two and made sure they were completely unconscious before turning off her emitter. Rummaging through the pockets of the first guard, Amelia found a key card then turned to the two doors. She swiped the front of the card on the motion-sensor on her left and the red lights above the doorway turned green.

Excitement and anticipation always bubbled up inside of her whenever she got this far; not from the thrill of breaking in, but what was about to come. Amelia opened the double doors wide open and gazed in awe at the state-of-the-art lab that lay before her. Although it was nighttime, the emergency lights were still on, allowing her to see the shiny equipment without switching to night vision. This was her candy store and she could hardly wait to see what new things Mr. Stark had recently installed. It would make stealing them that much more rewarding.

The young woman's head jerked up immediately as soon as the Captain had spoke. Most people couldn't sneak up on her. Startled that he had and could sneak up on her, Astrid's hand gave an involuntary jerk and she gave a light squeal as her pencil went flying along with her notebook. Papers fluttered in the air, gently wafting to the floor in a flurry as she stood up. “Woah! You can't just sneak up on people like that!” There was a show of genuine fright that flickered across her visage before quickly being replaced by a smile. Giving a soft chuckle, she shook her head before clapping her hands. A hologram was brought up between her hands, her fingers moving quickly to a dial, making as if to hold it, turning it. As the music turned down, she made a swiping motion to move the hologram out of her way. “I usually stab people that surprise me – You're lucky that I'm one-hundred percent certain this area is secure.” She offered him a grin before getting on her knees to pick up the hundreds of papers on the floor.

The white papers held numerous images that suggested that she had way too much time on her hands. There were sketches of children on playgrounds, random people in the diner, and even some portraits of the other Avengers. “You look pretty young for an old guy.” She looked up at him with a smile, lifting a brow as she attempted to engage in polite conversation as the jet began to take off on its own, the woman on the floor maintaining her balance with ease.

–

Tony had spent the majority of his day working on his new suit. His lab had been closed off to everyone as he dove deeper and deeper into his work. People seemed to think that he just snapped his fingers and somehow brought his ideas to life. They had no idea the amount of hard work and time that he invested into his projects. He put his heart and soul into everything that he did. With every new thing that he created, it only tacked onto his ego. How could he not be proud of himself? Nobody in this lifetime compared to his genius. Except his friend, Bruce Banner, of course. But Tony had the one-up on him when it came to technological genius.

He grew more and more excited as his suit neared completion into the wee hours of the evening, the moon soon hanging high in the sky as he finally finished building and semi-testing his equipment. He felt now that it was sturdy enough to go for a test drive. By the time he had left the lab with his suit walking behind him most everyone had retired to their apartments within the building. It was mostly security now roaming the halls. He stopped to take selfies with a few of them who had asked back when he was in a foul mood – He hadn't been so nice to them before so he even bothered to follow them on Twitter too just to bump their social status.

On his roof, he looked down at the city with a somewhat grim expression. After a few moments had passed he leaped down towards the ground. He closed his eyes as the wind blew against him, the ground coming at him fast. Seconds later he could feel the familiar sensation of metal encasing his body, the clink of everything sliding into place a soothing sound to his ears. The thrusters in his boots and gloves fired up and shot him into the air. His body did a spiral as he opened his eyes to the screen before him. “Alright – Let's go catch a thief.” Talking to himself, he shot through the sky, keeping above the clouds until he came near the warehouse in question.

He lighted down on the ground nearby, not even a sound coming from his new armor, black in color and built for stealth. Standing up straight, he looked around to assess the area. His scanner picked up pieces of shattered glass near one of his security cameras and he frowned behind his face mask. The door was open as well. His suit gave a shimmer before it seemed to disappear altogether as he moved forward and worked his ways through the rooms to the one place he knew the thief would go – His main lab for this area. After tonight he'd be keeping his projects closer to home and upping security. Maybe even building some Iron Man suits to stand guard instead of the humans he had. Happy always thought it'd be a cool idea after Tony had showed him that he had suits programmed to move on their own with preloaded direction from him. He couldn't guarantee that the suits wouldn't kill intruders, though he didn't really care so much about that.

He moved silently until he came across three unconscious guards. A quick scan showed that they were still breathing. Confirming this, his anger rose a bit more and he continued forward until he was staring at the back of the head of the person who'd broken in. With absolutely no hesitation, he rose his right hand and aimed for the person's back. His glove began to glow bright blue before emitting a relatively mild powered pulsar beam. Unlike his previous suits, this one was built for stealth and espionage. In its current state, it could bend and reflect light to render itself to seem invisible. It possessed holographic technology that allowed it to seem capable of shapeshifting as well. The weapons it had were not meant to take down Chitauri or people like Ivan Vanko. The weapons were meant to subdue, all nonlethal.

“Didn't your parents ever teach you not to take things that weren't yours? Though, I think that's just common sense.” Tony's armor shimmered back into view, his face mask lifting to reveal his naturally arrogant visage.

Steve was delighted to see all the training he did with Clint and Sam come into fruition. Sure, he was never able to surprise Natasha but Astrid was a great close second. Before he met her, all he knew about the secret master spy were only about her skills and 100% mission completion rate. Who would have thought that an eccentric blue-haired artist would be the one behind all the rumors? The Cap stifled his laughter as he bent over to pick up one of Astrid’s fallen sketches, taking the chance to inspect a portrait of one of the waitresses at the diner they were at earlier. She really was quite good. Before he could comment on her talent, Astrid jokingly pointed out his young features, causing him to smile. Years ago, he would have flinched at such a statement, no matter how light-hearted it was. Thankfully, he didn’t feel like such an outsider anymore. Sure, he still had tons of things he had to catch up on but there were some pop culture references he was okay with not knowing.

“And you’re pretty friendly for a super spy.” He replied back in the same light-hearted tone as he maintained his balance while the jet took off into the air, “I’m surprised at how little I know about you. Is there anything I’m allowed to know?” Back when he wasn’t always partnered up with the same people on missions, Steve made sure he knew the basics about whoever he was working with. Names, operation statistics, even birthdays; Steve found all these important. Yet when SHIELD fell, Steve stuck working with Natasha, Clint, Sam or a combination of the three. Of course he didn’t mind but when he was given a mission with someone new, he found it a little disconcerting that he couldn’t get any information about his partner. So far, he was incredibly surprised with what he’d discovered. Hopefully she’ll allow him to learn more about her. He was definitely eager to find out.

---

Amelia’s excitement was short lived when she felt a sudden jolt of energy hit her backside, sending her straight to the ground. Although her spine was burning, her teeth ground together not from pain, but from irritation when she heard the arrogant voice behind her. A voice she heard dozens of thousands of times on the radio, television, freaking everywhere.

“I don’t see why you’re getting your iron panties all up in a bunch over a few missing items.” She replied hoarsely as her fingers flew over her right glove, “I’m sure you can easily replace them, or are you really that much of a selfish prick?” The moment those words left her mouth, her glove was ready and she quickly jumped up to face Tony Stark. She was glad her goggles were still in place because the green-tinted glass covered the mixture of awe and jealousy in her eyes when she saw his new suit. Amelia was well aware of his MIA status the past couple of months as well as the destruction of a number of his suits. When did he make this? Why was it so cool-looking? She bit her lip, angry at herself for being so envious, and pointed her sonic emitter at him. A wave of high-pitched screeches erupted from the disc, instantly shattering the few glass vials on a nearby table. Amelia hoped his suit didn’t have a built-in high-tech ear plugs because this was her only ace in the hole. If this didn’t work… she’d have to think of something else.

As the jet steadied itself, bumping only a bit from turbulence, Astrid finished gathering up her drawings and plucking playfully the ones that Steve had picked up. Standing tall and proud, she gave a coy and mysterious smile. “You're pretty unequivocal. I like that. But... A woman's gotta have her mystery, right?” Wiggling her eyebrows in a comedic way so that her well groomed arches appeared to be doing the worm. Giggling softly, she moved past him and slid down the rail of the spiral stairs that lead to something of a “chill” area, taking to the bar where she grabbed a bottle of black spice rum, leaving her sketches on the counter.

“Though, considering how much I know about you... I suppose it's only fair.” She sat down and twisted the cap off of the bottle, bringing the rim to her lips and downing almost half of it in a little under three seconds. There was a visible, almost violent shudder of her body as the dark liquid slipped down her throat, leaving a trail of fire in its wake until it came to settle in her stomach, leaving a warmth in her chest and a slightly goofy smile on her face. “If you've got any questions... Ask away. I'm not really used to working as part of a team but I figure that I can trust you with a secret or two.” She gave him a nod and motioned for him to join her.

{ x x x x x x x x x x x }

“So, you were raised by thieves?” Tony kept his cocky demeanor as he braced himself for her attack. He didn't have any true fear of her. He was a bit impressed with her stopgap suit but he'd not reveal that. Even if he wanted to, he wouldn't much have the chance. He found his ears ringing from a sonic emitter. It was his turn to grind his teeth now as his head began to hurt. He quickly thrust out his arm, blasting the irritating disk with the same pulsar beam that he had hit her with. As soon as the screeching ended, he moved towards her with surprising speed, his hand coming down on her head. It wasn't hard enough to crack her skull, but hard enough to knock her out.

He caught her unconscious form as she crumpled immediately, hoisting her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He carried her over to a nearby chair, tying her up. Tony removed her rudimentary suit components and set them on a table nearby, inspecting them as he sat down and waited for her to wake up. The technology was impressive for a woman who seemed so young, though he wasn't that impressed. She'd been stealing from him and this was all she could come up with? He gave a soft snort and glanced over at her, admittedly curious about her story. Still, he was pissed that she was stealing from him. Apparently, asking people for things was something lost on young folk.

Once all of Astrid's papers were picked up from off the ground, Steve followed her down a narrow spiral staircase leading to what looked like a lounge area complete with a fully-stocked bar. He stayed by the counter as Astrid grabbed a dark bottle and made herself at home on one of the couches, interested to look through a few more of her sketches. She obviously didn't mind and would have stopped him a lot sooner if she did. He was examining her shading techniques in one particular sketch when he heard Astrid giving him permission to ask anything he would like. He glanced over to her relaxed form, impressed to see half of her large bottle already empty while he thought of his first question. Steve didn't want to ask too many questions and come off as a nosy but he wanted to get some information about her. The more he knew, at least about her tactics and personality, would aid them in the upcoming operation.

Finally, Steve crossed the small room and took a seat next to Astrid. "Then I'll start off with an easy question," he began. "Where are you from?" Learning where someone was born and raised opened up doors to all kinds of information. Whether they were born abroad or not told Steve that she could be fluent in other languages. If she were born up north or in the south told him what kind of morals and values she would have probably grown up in. If she was raised in a city or suburb gave way to other kind of variables as to what made up the eccentricity known as Astrid.

---

Amelia felt a flash of confidence when she saw the pain she was inflicting the great Tony Stark only to be snuffed out a second later with a powerful blow to her head. She lost consciousness immediately, not even realizing that she had been hit so easily. What felt like hours later (although it was probably only minutes), the brunette awoke to a massive headache and a tight, uncomfortable feeling around her shoulders. It took her a few seconds to realize that her hands were tied behind her back and she was strapped down in a chair. Her hazy eyes quickly became panicked as she frantically looked around until she saw the black Iron Man suit standing a few feet away. Amelia moved her fingers across her palms and paled when she felt the fabric of her gloves instead of the smooth metal of the sonic emitter she had created.

"Hey! Untie me!" She shouted as pulled at her restraints, "And stop looking at my stuff!" Dammit, she felt like a fool. She shouldn't have let her conscience get in the way of her plans. If only she had stolen more of Stark's stuff instead of taking the bare minimum. Maybe she could have fashioned an armored suit better than his if she didn't initially feel guilty about the whole thing. She never should have felt guilty in the first place; this guy allowed his emotions to dictate the fate of the city and just because his chick cheated on him didn't mean he could just clock out from his heroic duty. When he made that announcement about his superhero identity all those years ago, he had become more than just a mascot for his company. He was a freaking superhero and superheroes aren't allowed to take time off. There were too many people to think about. And it was because of his selfish whims that she lost everything she had left. After a few more fruitless attempts in escaping, Amelia accepted her fate with an angry huff before turning her attention back to Tony who was still ignoring her.

"Hey! I said stop looking at my stuff!"

Astrid easily finished off the bottle with minimal shuddering this time around, smiling as she leaned back with a relaxed posture. “That's actually rather difficult.” She crinkled her nose gently. She wasn't about to lie to him but she could certainly omit some of the truth. “Hell's Kitchen, initially. My father is quite an exploring man. I'd been to every country at least once by the time I was eighteen. I frequent the UK, Colombia, and New York most often. And Brazil! Oh, I love Brazil.” She smiled and set down the empty bottle before tilting her head up and eyeing the Captain, assessing him and attempting to determine what questions he would ask.

He was clearly not the prying type so she knew not to expect anything personal. The fact that he hadn't expressed any trepidation, discomfort, or doubt in her abilities let her know that he trusted Nick to set him up with a skilled agent. Still, it was a good idea to know at least a little something about your partner's field tactics and abilities. It helped a great deal with planning and working together. “I'm also really flexible on the field. My enemies call me 'Bullseye' sometimes. Because I never miss a shot. I'm a ninth degree black belt in six different forms of martial arts and I'm a former Women's Golden Glove champion. And I'm pretty handy with computers. Just tell me what you need me to do.”

She was more comfortable heavily playing down her skills when she worked with other people, especially her strength. She didn't like people knowing too much about her and letting them live. No enemy ever lived after witnessing her abilities. She couldn't trust other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents or the organisation's mercs because they tended to gossip. She was infamous for being more mysterious than their beloved one-eyed Director and she intended to keep herself shrouded in that curtain of enigmas. The rumors about her that floated around combined with the very few agents who actually saw her suggested that she was merely a legend, some urban myth conjured up by senior agents to jostle those fresh behind the badge. She had learned from the best, Fury and Romanova, transcending them both and become a ghost; Or an angel, as the most popular story of her suggested.

She wondered if the Captain had heard those stories yet. She remembered hearing one of those tales for the first time, lurking about in the shadows of the rafters of one of their facilities while many agents lounged about on break.

High above the polished black floors of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base in Baton Rouge, Lousiana – The Warren – was a young woman hanging upside down, using her legs to hold onto the beam. She went unnoticed, invisible as she enjoyed a rousing game of online Scrabble through her phone. She craned her head as the sound of laughter reached her ears. Bright green eyes peered down at a group of seven agents sitting on and around a desk with lunches and coffee in hand. “I'm dead serious. A fucking angel saved us. Roman, you were there! Tell 'em!” A male rookie agent that looked no older than twenty-five, fresh out of their Communications Academy,  spoke in an insisting tone and gestured to an older, seasoned agent. Agent Roman gave a nod, her brown hair peppered with silver strands giving a light sway. “I'd be laughing too if I wasn't there. We were supposed to be retrieving stolen files from some pissant terrorist cell in Bangladesh. But our informant double crossed us at the last minute. Fuckers got their hands on a lot of weapons real fast. They trashed our jet and it wasn't like we could speed out of there. Too many villages nearby with a lot of innocents. We called for an extraction but it would have taken two hours and we didn't have that long. We were stuck between a rock and a hard place.” The woman above was listening intently now, a smile flickering across her face as the other agents listened with serious expressions.

“Tacum and I were cornered in the northwest quadrant of the compound and they were about to kill me and take him prisoner. I hear the rookie praying for the Valkyrie of S.H.I.E.L.D. to save us and I had to laugh a little. I mean, up until moments later I thought that was just something Fury made up and circulated around the academies and that anyone who said they'd seen her were just hallucinating. But there was this... This really bright flash of light and gunfire. When we could see again there was a girl standing there. Didn't look much older than fifteen or sixteen. Gorgeous girl with gold curls so long that it'd probably make Rapunzel want to chop her locks. She had this really huge, magnificent wings that were spread out. Bullets were just crumpling against 'em like in that Superman movie where the bullet hit his eye and got crushed. She had this shield and sword and she just started slashing. There was like this bubble that formed around me and Tacum, bullets just bouncing off it. Roots were shooting up out of the ground and strangling the guys and she was tossing them like they were just pebbles, sent a few guys a hundred yards a way and took out some walls. And before we knew it, it was over. She turned around and she was covered in blood.”

Everyone was on the edge of their seats now, some with wide eyes and dropped jaws. Agent Roman paused, shaking her head as if she didn't believe it herself still, debating whether or not it was just a dream. “Covered in blood and she had... She had this glow that came from inside her. Her eyes, her hair, her skin. Like she had just ate a rainbow; I wondered if she shit glitter too. And, this girl. Her sword and shield disappeared and she just smiled, the most wonderful smile. After it all, after destroying a small and heavily armed army in less than five minutes, this little girl, she still looked so innocent. Not even in a creepy way. She told us to go ahead and get out of there while she cleaned up the scene. The bubble just faded and we took off. I looked back and watched her shoot... Beams of light from her hands, disintegrating bodies into ash.” She finished with a whisper that was followed by a tense silence. The agents weren't sure whether or not to believe her but they doubted that Roman, of all people, would make up such a tale. She was a no-nonsense woman and didn't even have a sense of humor. Above, the young woman gave a soft giggle that reached their ears. They jumped and looked around for the sound that seemed to come from nowhere, leaving with an ethereal echo before they departed quickly.

There were many tales about her but nobody knew it was her per se. Those whom she had saved never saw her face again as she simply became a faceless, nameless mercenary working strangely close to the Director. She enjoyed the fun and complexity of it all. For a woman so in love with acting it was a dream come true that she could be anyone she wanted to be whenever she wanted to be.

{ x x x x x x x x x x }

When she finally came to and began shouting, Tony essentially ignored her. He continued inspecting her items before giving a soft laugh. “Oh, that's how you think this works? You can steal my stuff but I can't look at yours? Wow – That's a real nice fantasy world you live in.” He put her stuff down nevertheless and turned towards her and approached her. “But let me tell you how the real world works. You steal shit and you go to jail. You steal millions of dollars worth of military grade weaponry and equipment and materials from a lab specializing in making stuff to kill people and you go to prison. For the rest of your life.” He pulled up a chair and sat across from her, crossing one leg over the other, the helmet of his suit making no sound as it began to collapse and tuck itself into the neck area of his suit, revealing his face.

“You use those millions of dollars worth of military grade weaponry and equipment and materials to build a knock off Iron Man suit with no license or registration for possession or operation of the stolen equipment or weapons... Well, you get put down as a terrorist and will likely be killed after a lengthy process of interrogation and torture that ignores the Geneva Convention codes. Our government doesn't play nice with terrorists. For all we know, you could be HYDRA. See, I could turn you in and that could happen. You'll probably get lucky and get to live. HYDRA's all up in the government and they might like your nifty little talent of yours, offer you a job and a chance to live. Then you'll live every day with a target painted on the back of your head because I never forget a face. But you could be a good person – which I doubt at this point – and turn them down. And then they'll kill you. Or brainwash you and force you to work for them. I heard they do that. Then you'll live every day after that working for them with cyanide capsule embedded in your cheek bone, forced to kill yourself if ever in a compromising situation.”

He let it all sink in, tinkering with the forearm part of his suit, his left arm lifting a bit. A holographic scene was projected from it that presented her face along with a slew of information. “You don't seem to have any terrorist ties. You seem more like a Plain Jane. But HYDRA's good at blending in. The only reason I know you're not HYDRA is because of that shitty suit. Honestly, I don't give a damn who you are. What I do know is that some random person has been stealing my shit, attacking my employees, ripping off my tech, and thinks they can get away with it. You heard of Justin Hammer of Hammer Industries? Ivan Vanko, maybe? They tried to do what you're doing. Vanko's dead and Hammer will never see the light of day again.”

He lowered his arm and leaned towards her, tilting his head. He squinted his eyes some before giving a nod. “Maybe I've got you pegged wrong though. Maybe you're not a terrorist. Maybe you're just a smart girl looking to be a hero. Saw me down in a time of weakness and decided to strike and upstage me. You're not doing a good job at hiding the hate in your eyes or your tone. So, let me take a shot.” He stood up and paced around her in a circle, maintaining his casual tone. “You don't like rich people. Particularly me. The fact that you're stealing from me rather than working with scrap shows that much. Taking a shot at the fat cat, hm? I didn't have all this when I built my first suit. I literally built it from semi rusted steel and iron with leftover parts from random guns using a toolkit you can get from any auto store for ten bucks and a blowtorch. You seem smart enough that you could do the same.” He paused to lift a leg and put it on the seat of his chair in a semi Captain Morgan pose, elbow on knee and chin resting against his fist. “Because you seem to hate me so much – which shows very poor character since you don't even know me – you revel in the fact that I'm beaten down and rendered incapable of performing my Iron Man duties.”

He moved again, now standing in front of her with a straight face, looking directly into her eyes. “Your seething hatred for me allows you to believe that I'm just being lazy. That I'm somehow less of a hero because I have flaws like everyone else. You decide that you think you can do a better job and start attacking my guards and stealing my stuff, ripping off my Iron Man. You've probably stopped a few muggers, rapists, burglars, and thugs. Think you're the shit and doing a better job, right? When's the last time you had to defend the Earth against an army of over two million aliens with technology years, maybe centuries, ahead of what we're capable of lead by a two thousand year old god with magic and tech that managed to kill nearly a hundred people in three days and almost sank New York City into the sea with only five people fighting at your side? When's the last time you watched someone you love sit in a coma because he was trying to help you fight the bad guys? When's the last time you stopped a nuclear missile from destroying a city and killing millions? Have you stared death in the face?”

His tone was more grave now as he gripped the arms of the chair, his face close to hers with a fire in his eyes. “I have saved countless lives, brought medicine and security to hundreds of small villages terrorized by local military terrorists, dropped billions of dollars into damn near every charity I could possibly find, and put terrorists behind bars. I'm a superhero. It's what the fuck I do. But I'm a human, too. In case you might have thought otherwise. I don't have inexhaustible energy to spend every hour of my life wide awake stopping every terrorist and getting every cat out of a tree for girl scouts and little old ladies. I have watched my lifelong best friend sit in a coma for nearly a month after being nearly blown up by a man who had beef with me. I've watched my fiance nearly die on several occasions before she fucked me over and left me. I've watched people die because I'm not perfect and invincible and I couldn't save them. I have fucking nightmares and panic attacks when I'm not drunk off my ass and buried balls deep in some faceless broad. I see all the people that died because I wasn't fast enough to save them, because I got there too late. I see aliens bumrushing men, women, and children and slaughtering them like sheep. I still see an entire armada of Chitauri waiting to conquer earth, I still feel the breath leaving my body after going through a wormhole.”

He stepped back and his voice began to raise as anger seeped in and he began to lose control. “Excuse the fuck out of me for not being prepared to find out that gods exist! That magic exists! Forgive me, little thief, for not being prepared, for fearing what else is out there and wondering whether or not we can match it! Asgard exists and there's an entire planet of Chitauri out there! I don't know what else is out there! This world doesn't have the means to know what's out there and who's coming next! We don't know if we can handle the next threat that comes this way!” He was absolutely seething now as he glared at Amelia. “You think you're better than me? You think I'm a shitty hero because I have some issues? Where the fuck were you when Loki and the Chitauri attacked? I don't remember seeing you out there with us, shedding blood and taking hits to protect the world. Where were you when The Mandarin was blowing people up? I don't remember hearing about you trying to track him down to take him down. Do you actually give a shit about people or are you just doing this to spite me because of groundless hatred? Why wait until I was down?”

He was smirking now, a wry look of smugness in his expression. “There are... police officers, fire fighters, the Army, the Marines, the Navy, the Air Force, S.H.I.E.L.D., and five other Avengers out there busting their asses to take down HYDRA any every other enemy of peace. So why target me? Why wait until I was knocked down to swoop in and try to be a hero? You want the limelight? You want the chance to make me look bad, make me look inferior?” He gave a dark chuckle as he shook his head. “Nice try, sister. But that ain't gonna happen. Because you're generally what's called a vigilante. But you're not just a vigilante. You're running around with weapons and technology stolen from me doling out justice where you see fit. You're a wild card and a nameless face that nobody knows. The difference between you and me when I first put on my suit? I had the proper requirements. I didn't steal my shit. I didn't hide who I was or what I was about. Being so secretive is doing you no favors. And, unlike me, you don't have money or lawyers to save you when the law comes down because they can't trust some waitress from the Bronx with stolen military weapons thinking that she knows what's best instead of leaving it to the professionals. You really think the public's going to accept you as this new Iron Woman superhero you're trying to pull off? To them you'll just be a wannabe and a fraud with no original ideas. And the press will have a field day when they find out you've been stealing from me. You'll be lumped in with the likes of Ivan and Justin. You'll need to upgrade to keep up if you're trying to be a hero. And you can't afford it. You think anyone's going to support you, sponsor you, want anything to do with you? You'd just be the bitch trying to rip off Tony Stark. I could sue you for intellectual theft like I've done to every other person stealing from me. You cannot win this.”

He took a step back now and crossed his arms over his chest with a frown on his face. “So, all that remains is to decide what to do with you... I could sue and press charges and let the government or HYDRA or even S.H.I.E.L.D. deal with you. Ninety-nine percent chance of that leaving you dead. Or I could just let you go and publicly announce that I caught the dubious thief but not sue or press charges. You would be a pariah and would probably lose your job. Nobody would hire you. And HYDRA would find you... Or you could work off your debt working for me since you're so greedy to fuck with my shit.”  

Steve couldn’t hide his surprise when Astrid listed all the places she had been and all the things she had accomplished. It definitely explained a lot about her, like her eccentricities, her nature, the way she seemed to be inviting him closer but pushing him away at the same time. A child raised abroad is often times highly intelligent but had a hard time connecting with others while growing up. Her mysterious, yet mischievous demeanor as well as her way of talking people around circles was clear evidence of that. And the way she maintained a high level of secrecy in an already classified organization was impressive.

He remembered the first time he heard about this ‘angel’. One particularly excited operative who wanted to make conversation with him told him a fantastical story about a woman appearing in a golden light and killing off an entire, heavily armed terrorist cell. Of course Steve didn’t believe a word of it until he heard another story about her. And another. And then another. Honestly, it seemed like a S.H.I.E.L.D. urban legend since each story always depicted the woman differently. One story described her with golden blond hair, wings, a sword and magical powers. In another story, she was a pink-haired woman who fought a battalion with only her bare fists. The inconsistency made her unbelievable but seeing the mysterious figure behind all these stories made Steve rethink everything he had heard. Astrid seemed like the kind of woman who could do all that stuff. But that only brought about a new question; how?

“That’s impressive.” He finally responded as he pushed that thought to the back of his mind. “Glad to know you’re on our side.” He then racked his brain for another question, something as easygoing as his first.

“What did your parents do that made you move around so much? I’m assuming military…?”

---

Amelia decided that the smart move right now was to hold her tongue as Stark prattled on a long-ass monologue and write them off as the ravings of a mad billionaire playboy superhero (especially when he began talking about Greek mythological creatures and government conspiracies). Yet when his speech became an analysis of her own psychology and philosophical views on society and heroism , she couldn’t help but feel the painful jabs of his words as they hit almost every mark dead on. Amelia detested the fact that he could see most of her motives so clearly, like her hatred for the selfish 1% of society or that she could only scratch the surface of stopping crime and villainy in the city. But it wasn’t until he began listing off the consequences of her actions that fear began to creep through her arrogant facade. She could barely hide the panic in her eyes when he threatened to ship her off to jail and sue for intellectual theft.

Once he backed away, Amelia got her thoughts together and readied a counterargument. He had been right about everything, except one thing; her motive in doing all this. Sure, hatred played a key role in her stepping into the role of a vigilante and going out of her way to steal Tony Stark’s materials and equipment, but there was something else that drove her. Something he didn't figure out since he only glanced at her files and piece together whatever he saw on the outside. Anxious to take him down a peg, Amelia was completely thrown off guard when he suddenly offered a job.

“Wh-what?” She stuttered out in response. “After all I've done, you want to offer me a job at your company?” She could barely believe it. This was definitely the furthest thing she expected from Stark after getting caught stealing. He even took the time to insult everything wrong with her second-rate copy of his mechanics. What the hell was he planning?

She could see a click of recognition in his eyes that lasted for about a nanosecond. Most people would have missed it. But, most people didn't have eyes like hers and most people weren't trained by super spies. She gave a chuckle and lifted a brow. As his next question came she couldn't help but to hold some trepidation. She hadn't hesitated on her previous answer, replying to him immediately. Now, however, she wasn't sure what to say. She knew that, of all the people in the worlds, she could trust him. He was Captain America. However, she couldn't really tell him the whole truth. But, she decided that a half-truth was fine. “My father was a Colonel in the United States Army and he was even part of the Howling Commandos for a while... About seventy years ago. He's been running S.H.I.E.L.D. for the past couple of decades or so. My mother was a bit of an Eco-Warrior – She was more about saving the environment than the people that destroyed it.”

She gave a small smile as she let it sink in, standing up and crossing her arms over her chest. She looked more like her mother but anyone who knew Nick Fury could see that she had a few features in common with him... Or at least just his ears. She honestly looked almost nothing like her stern-faced, one-eyed father. Her features were beautiful, delicate, and gentle. Perhaps when she was angry one might see the flare of Nicholas Fury in her eyes but nobody setting them side by side could make such a connection between them initially. She moved towards the Captain and gave an impish smile. “I really am the world's best kept secret, love.”

{ x x x x x x x x x x x x }

“Look, I'm going to be straight with you,” Tony sighed as he sat down across with her. “It hasn't hit the news yet, but the world is a lot more fucked than you think it is. History lesson: Back in the days of my father, the Nazis had a secret organization called HYDRA hellbent on taking over the world. They knew about alien technology long before S.H.I.E.L.D. was even formed and they specialize in hunting it down. A couple months ago? When those giant hellicarriers crashed out of the sky in DC... That was them. It's recently come to attention to a select few that HYDRA was not completely obliterated back when Captain America was frozen. They've got sleeper agents everywhere and they've torn apart S.H.I.E.L.D. and I'm just now finishing up weeding them out of my company.”

He paused to let it sink in, pulling up holographic images, files, and videos and pushing it towards her for her to see the information on HYDRA. “You want to be a hero for real? Then step up to the plate. The world's going to need as much help as it can get. Even if that help is a little thief.” He gave a light smirk, leaning back some. “Besides – As much of a dick as you think I am, I'm not about to send some girl to her death for trying to help people.”

Steve listened intently to Astrid's words, as he did with anyone he spoke with. It was just the polite thing to do after all. But it took him several moments to fully comprehend what she had just dropped on him. He even stared at Astrid's cute little smile without giving it another thought before it all dawned to him. "Wait," he began as scrambled out of the couch, "you mean to tell me that you're Nick Fury's daughter?!" With the truth now out in the open instead of just being vague hints, Steve began to study the woman's face for any semblance to his boss. He could connect a few personality traits the two had in common, like their terribly secretive natures. However, he could not find any physical similarities between Astrid and Nick Fury that it was hard to take her seriously. But from what he had learned about this eccentric bluenette so far was that she never lied but simply hide the truth extremely well. He would have never found out unless she told him, which she did.

Before he could utter a follow-up question, a robotic voice resounded through the PA of the jet, announcing the estimated time of arrival to their destination was less than 20 minutes. Inwardly cursing the bad timing, Steve turned his attention back to Astrid. He wasn’t sure if he was angry about the additional secrecy or just plain baffled by this new information but he knew he wanted more details specifically about why she decided to tell him. “We’ll talk about this later. We need get ready.” He finally stated before rushing up the stairs. Awaiting them outside the jet’s windows was a research facility a good few clicks away and getting closer with each second. Steve went over to his equipment he discarded earlier in the flight and locked his shield behind his back, all the while pushing thoughts of the previous conversation out of his mind. It would only distract him.

---

The idea that a secret organization with roots with the Nazi party tried to take over the world and put sleeper agents in every branch of the United States government and all its affiliates seemed like a load of conspiracy bullshit to Amelia. Yet, Stark made no move to laugh it off as a jerk. He actually looked completely serious. She wanted to think the man had finally lost his marbles due to all this stress about aliens and gods but a part of her nagged that maybe this was true. It definitely explained all that crazy shit that happened a few months ago regarding Captain Amer-

Wait a second. Wasn’t Captain America’s civilian name Steve Rogers? Was that who Astrid was seeing earlier this afternoon? What the hell?! What did she do for a living?!

Stark reiterating his offer to give her a job bought Amelia back to the issue at hand. She’d deal with the mysterious Astrid later. If she ever saw her again. Amelia probably could if she agreed to the job. It was either that or being sent off to jail where she’d probably be killed by these snake guys. She looked over Tony Stark one more time, twitching in annoyance when she saw him smirk. Maybe going to jail wouldn’t be so bad…

No, it would be bad. Incredibly bad. She’d just have to swallow her pride and deal with this prick. No matter how much Stark reminded Amelia of him.

“Well I can definitely say this is the weirdest job interview I’ve ever had. Or do you tie up all your potential employees?” She asked, readjusting her arms to alleviate the strain on her shoulders. “But yeah, sure. I’ll work for you. Now will you let me go?”

“Ready for a second date already? That's a first,” she teased happily with a grin. She somewhat reveled in the confusion in his face before moving towards her bags to get ready. Whistling happily to herself, she unzipped the Hello Kitty duffel bag and pulled out two garters sheathing six throwing knives a piece, strapping the leather garter to her thighs. “Alright, we've got our reflectors on so we can definitely sneak in. We won't even show up on the radar. We can hover about five clicks away and make it there on foot. There are some ATVs in the freight hold. I'll program the jet to land twenty minutes after our drop and have the ATVs programmed to come to us. By then, we'll either have killed everyone in there or, at the very least, alerted them to our presence. I'm assuming that there will be some injuries and We'll fare better on wheels than trying to carry a marine.”

She ran over a game plan while she strapped up her weapons that included eight spike darts, eight throwing stars, and a pair of octagon sai. As if she wasn't already enough of a mystery, she had seemed to transform into a ninja. She pulled a white mask up over her mouth and nose, partially to avoid inhaling sand and partially for the aesthetic appeal. She hummed softly and pulled out two extra spike darts, using them to quickly bring her blue locks into a series of complicated, intricate, braids so that they no longer dragged on the floor. She refused to cut them even as a child so her father always made her wear her hair up before entering any sort of mission situation. Especially after he had to save her when she missed an extraction point because her hair had gotten caught in an elevator.

She moved quickly back up to the cockpit and began fiddling with the dials and screens until the jet began to slow to a halt. She leaped back down to the Captain and patted him on his back, her hand grazing his shield. “After the ATVs come for the extraction, you go ahead and get the marines on the jet. I'll take down the Sandbox and catch up to you guys. If fire gets too heavy, go. Don't even worry about me.” She offered a kind smile. Though her lips could not be seen, the twinkle and crinkle of her eyes could be. She moved past him and traveled to the freight hold where she programmed the ATVs. Waiting on him, she could feel the blast of air as the bottom of the quinjet slowly opened. She estimated the jump to be about seventy feet, nodding to herself. No big deal.

{ x x x x x x x x x x x }

“Only the cute ones.” Tony shrugged lightly as he grabbed a small blowtorch from a nearby table and used it to break her bonds. “Now, because I don't trust you, I'll have an apartment ready for you in Avengers Tower in about six minutes. You'll have an intern's access pass to the labs but full access to the training facilities that I had installed for the Avengers.” He paused to turn around and face her, giving a serious expression. “Just try to stay focused on work and not Thor's abs... Or Natasha's tits – Whatever you're into. They'll be moving in by the end of the week and I don't need a fangirl swooning all over them.” He gave a nod as if finished, turning around again.

The head of his suit came back up as he began walking away, not bothering to look over his shoulder as he spoke some more. “And you're going to need to work on your suit – You're not apprenticing under me with that. We're heading to Cilangkap, Indonesia tomorrow. We'll need our rest for the night. We need to build a bridge, dig a well, sanitize their water, and deal with the military thugs and gangs extorting them.” He had earlier requested J.A.R.V.I.S. begin preparing files for places most in need and send them to his suit. He was determined to get back into action and Amelia was going to help him whether she liked it or not. She wanted to be a hero, so he would make her a hero.