Warning: This story ignores some x-men canon, read at your own risk.
You sit on the couch in your apartment, you face pressed into your hands as the news plays tonight's top story in between bursts of static: you. "A robbery went wrong earlier this morning when an unidentified mutant stepped in and stopped the criminals. Police are asking for any information regarding this woman and her current whereabouts-" You grab the remote and mash the button, cutting the news woman's voice off as they showed the grainy security camera footage of you next to a police sketch once again. You should have been regarded as a hero for what you had done this morning, but now you were being investigated. Don't be a hero. That had been one of Justine's rules of surviving as a mutant. Those had been her last words to you, and you should have listened. You jump as a loud thunderclap echoes outside and the lights around you flicker.
You had spent your whole life trying to make sure no one ever discovered your powers-after all, public opinion on mutants was at an all time low-and now after just one slip up you would have to give up everything again. And you probably didn't have much time. Your phone rang shrilly from the table next to you as if illustrating your point. It was probably someone you worked with who had seen the news footage.
In your bedroom you grab a backpack and start stuffing what you can into it. You change into a gray hoodie and jeans and pull your leather jacket over your arms. With your backpack shrugged over your shoulders you head back into the kitchen. Your grocery money is still in a jar on top of your fridge-you had been planning on going today-so you grab it and shove it into the front pocket of your jeans. As your phone rings again you open your front door and step into the pouring rain. You lower your head against the assault, trying to keep the wind from throwing the cold droplets onto your face as you head in the direction of the bus station. Your eyes dart from car to car as they pass you and you're careful to keep your hood pulled down as far as possible to keep your face in shadow.
You're halfway to your destination when a black car pulls up next to you. Your pulse races in your veins as a tinted window rolls down.
"No thank you!" You shout over the rain, but another crash of thunder drowns you out. "I don't need a ride!" You try again. Water droplets slide down your face as you wait for the car to pull away. The driver leans towards the passenger side and your body freezes as you get a look at his face.
"Come on kid, get in. We need to talk." You're not sure if this is best or worst case scenario, but either way there's no running. Your hand reaches out and grasps the door handle. Inside the warm air rushes over you and you shut the door behind you to keep the rain from flying in.
"Um. Hello. Mr. Stark. Sir."
"Tony, please. Are you okay?"
"I'm okay." He doesn't say anything else, and you don't have the guts to ask any of the hundred questions flying around your skull at the moment so you lapse into silence. As lightning forks across the sky your thoughts once again travel back to Boston and your time with Justine. Justine who had taught you how to fight, how to stay hidden, how to survive. Your only friend you had ever had, until she joined up with a group of radical mutants and gotten herself killed. The last night you had seen her had been a night like this.
You watch the lighting flashes out the window as the car rolls silently through the city. As you start the first loop of the airport you grow concerned.
You clear your throat, "Are we leaving Chicago?"
He doesn't respond at first until he pulls up to a private gate. An armed security guard waves him through, and he comes to a full stop in front of a Stark jet. "That's up to you," he says throwing the car into park. "You can stay here, take your chances with-" he grabs the bundle of wet money that's half-hanging out of your jean pocket, "Forty-bucks and the clothes on your back while every institution out there is looking to get their hands on you, or you can come with me to New York, we'll have a nice chat and if you want to part ways then, then I'll make sure you're on the run with a lot more than you have right now. Capiche?"
"Capiche," You say weakly as he hands you back your dripping money. You try to push it back into your pocket but your jeans are so wet that you end up ripping the money in half.
"You got anything on you that's dry or worth keeping?" You shake your head, "Then leave it."
You follow him out of a car where another security guard is waiting with an umbrella to walk you to the plane. As you walk to your seats you can hear him talking but you can't manage to tune in, your eyes are everywhere at once. You'd never been on a plane before, let alone a private jet like this. And you're dripping on the carpet.
"-Avengers Initiative."
"What?" You turn to look where Tony Stark's already sitting in his seat, an expensive looking tablet on his lap.
"Come on, you're smarter than that. You know exactly why you're here; are you interested?"
"In what-being an Avenger?" You let out a startled laugh. Stark's looking at you with a slightly amused look, but there's something in his eyes that tells you he's serious, "Are you-why?"
"Let me ask you a question," He gestures towards the empty seat in front of him and you obediently take a seat, "The fire-what kind of control do you have of it?" You raise your hand hesitantly, letting small flames light on your finger tips. As he watches, your roll your fingers and flip your hand so the small individual flames become a larger ball of flames in the palm of your hand. "Mmhmm. And I assume based on your earlier escapades that you can do a lot more than that given the opportunity." You nod slowly. "So knowing what you can do, why on earth are you asking me why I'm asking you if you're interested in joining?"
"Right," You say, "Okay. Yeah. I'm interested. Very interested. Like extremely interested."
Stark cracks a smile, "Yeah? Glad to hear it. How about I pop this champagne, and you tell me a little more about what you can do."
You're still damp when you land, but at least it's not raining. Your eyes trail over the expanse of buildings around you as you follow Tony through the compound and into a beautifully designed building. You're already lost as you wind through corridors and reality is kind of actually setting in because you're in the Avenger's compound right now. Before you really even know what's happening you're standing in front of a conference table in a room filled superheroes that you had previously seen only on the news.
You were immediately overwhelmed; they all seemed so larger than life. Hulking in the back of the room were the two super soldiers; Captain America looking as young and handsome as he had in the exhibit at the museum you had seen as a child, while the Winter Soldier looked far less murderous than he had in any of the news footage you'd previously seen. Not currently hulking was Dr. Bruce Banner who gave you a small wave from his seat at the table while Black Widow eyed you curiously from his side. Vision-an actual android was looking at you in such a calculating way that you quickly look away towards where the Falcon and Scarlet Witch were both smiling at you. You focus on the two of them as Tony claps his hand on your shoulder.
"Guys, this is (Y/n)." Stark says.
You smile weakly; you were standing in front of the Avengers right now in your still wet clothes. You had exposed yourself as a mutant on the national news, you were a wanted woman, and you were standing in front of the Avengers right now in your rain damp clothes.
Steve Rogers breaks through the group to stand in front of you, his blue eyes searching your face. "It's nice to meet you (Y/n)," Steve says gently; you must look terrible. You try to feel what your face looks like, but you feel almost numb. Part of you wonders if you're in shock. Now that you were out of survival mode, it kind of feels like your brain is shutting down. Steve looks worried, and you try and find your lips to respond with no success.. "Hey, why don't I show you to your room?" Your room. You had a room in the Avenger's compound. That does it, your vision grays and you're just barely aware of your legs giving out.
When you come to you're laying on a bed in an unfamiliar room. "(Y/n)?" You turn your head and Steve Rogers is kneeling down at your bedside.
"So no chance this was a terrible dream and I didn't pass out in front of all the Avengers?"
"Sorry." His smile is pleasant, and you turn back towards the ceiling with a groan.
"This might be the single most embarrassing moment of my life, and that's really saying something Captain."
"You have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about," He assures you, "Everyone's just concerned. This can be a lot to take in." He rises to his feet and you look up at him, "Get some sleep. We'll talk in the morning."
"Okay," You do feel exhausted, "Thank you."
"You're welcome." He shuts off the light before he leaves and you savor the darkness, letting yourself relax into the soft bed; a nice change of pace from your old mattress on the floor in your apartment.
The next morning you wake up to the sun streaming in the window. You sit up and rub at your eyes, confused about exactly where you are; then it hits you and your eyes widen. You were in the Avenger's compound. You probably had access to a shower. You sit up and look around the room. A cracked door next to the bed looks like a good prospect, and you slip off the bed and push it open: bingo.
You turn the knobs and sinfully warm water pours out so you quickly strip and step in, letting the water wash away the grime that had built up on your skin. When you step out you wrap the towel around you and frown at your clothes. Air dried fabric always had a slight crispiness to it that you weren't a fan of. It was a long shot, but you leave the bathroom to see if maybe the dresser was stocked. To your surprise there's a stack of clothing sitting on top of it. The question was who had brought it and when, but there was no sense thinking about it. On top is a pair of black sweatpants, followed by a grey tank top and a sports bra. You pull on the clothes and are pleased to find that they fit pretty well, you wondered who they belonged to.
You walk into the hall outside of your room, looking both ways before you turn right. You walk quietly, and coming to a staircase you descend it. Your bare feet hit the floor with a barely perceptible thud as you cross the next area. You can hear soft voice from a room ahead so you turn and find yourself in the kitchen. Standing in front of the stove frying up a pan of eggs is none other than the Winter Soldier himself while Steve Rogers toasts bread. They don't seem to notice your arrival, and you stand in the doorway for a moment.
"You really gave me a run for my money this morning punk," Steve says, aiming a jab at his friend's ribs before they both laugh.
"Huh, that's a funny way to say that I kicked your ass," The dark haired man shoots back. You take another step in and Steve looks over his shoulder and smiles.
"Hey, good morning," Steve says, "You hear all that (Y/n)? Don't listen to this guy, Bucky here thinks he's a comedian."
"The only reason you think I'm not is 'cause you ain't funny," Bucky responds with a cocky grin, before he turns to you, "Hi, I'm Bucky."
"Nice to meet you," You smile, "Nice to meet you both," you correct yourself.
"You hungry (Y/n)?" Bucky turns to grab a plate and his hip bumps the frying pan. "Oh shit-" You grab it before it hits the ground and Bucky looks at you surprised, "Hey-nice reflexes."
"Thanks," Bucky's uncomfortably close now and you quickly replace the pan on the stove and take a step back.
In the most surreal moment of your life thus far (previously it had been seeing your own face on the news), you find yourself sitting across from the two super soldiers in the Avenger's kitchen eating breakfast. You scoop another helping of eggs onto your toast and take a bite.
"This is really good, thanks," You tell Bucky again for probably the third time.
"You're welcome, again," he chuckles, "So you got the fire thing, pretty damn good reflexes, and based on the security footage from the store you can fight. Was that adrenaline or is there some training there?" You finish chewing while you think over the answer.
"Some," You say finally after you swallow, "Nothing you know, official, but I know how to fight."
"Is it just in your hands?" You hadn't noticed Tony walk in and you jump slightly at his appearance.
At first you're not sure what he's talking about, and then you realize it's obvious. "Uhhh, no. It's just most convenient in my hands-but I can engulf my whole body. That also helps with the fighting-I can burn the crap out of anyone who touches me. But unless I fight naked, I also scorch my clothes."
"That's what I figured," Tony walks over to the dry bar in the corner and pours himself a glass of something dark and alcoholic, "I have a few things to figure out but I have an idea of how we can work around that. I'll let you know when to come down to the lab," He takes a sip, adds another ice cube and walks out. You turn back to the soldiers somewhat dazed.
"What does he mean?"
"Tony's always looking for any excuse to work on a new suit." Steve smiles, like it's completely casual that Tony Stark wants to build you a suit. "Anyways," Steve sighs, "I was thinking if you're feeling up to it we could go down to the training rooms and see what you can do in a fight."
You almost choke on your toast, "A fight-what-with you?"
"Yeah," Steve smiles while Bucky snickers, "Don't worry, I'll keep it to normal human strength."
"Okay," You say after a moment, "I can do that."
Steve gathers up the plates, and Bucky stands up as well, "Mind if I watch? Besides, someone should probably stand by with the fire extinguisher just in case."
"Oh-I won't use my powers," you say quickly, "I don't want anyone or thing to get burned."
"You won't hurt anything," Steve assures you, "I want to see what you can do."
You really never thought you'd be facing off against Captain America while the Winter Soldier watched, but once again it seemed like your life had been tipped on its head. You pad slowly across the mat, your bare feet sinking in slightly with each step.
"Just come at me," Steve says gently, "I just want to see what you can do." You nod, taking a deep breath and just feel yourself out before you look up and meet his eyes. You lunge forward, your hands alight, forcing him to dodge backwards to avoid your flaming punch.
He grabs your right wrist and immediately drops it as your exposed flesh burns him. His eyes narrow and you can tell he's analyzing you; he moves faster now, utilizing some of his superhuman strength, and crouches slightly, sweeping his leg out to knock you off your feet before you can even register his movement. You manage to twist and land on your side instead of your back but the fall still knocks the wind out of you slightly. Steve hesitates and you use the opportunity to hook your ankle around his and send him tumbling to the ground as well, earning a laugh from Bucky. You sit up as Steve does, rubbing at your hip.
"You said you would keep it to normal-human strength," You say accusingly, "That was not normal human."
"Well I wasn't expecting you to be that good," Steve gives you a crooked grin and helps you to your feet.
"She can definitely take a hit," Bucky says, "That fall didn't even phase her and those mats aren't soft."
"You've got good instincts, and you've got the skill. It's gonna take Tony a minute to sort out the mess you're in, I'm not sure how long, but you'll be safe here. But if you want, you can stay here and be an Avenger. We'd be happy to have you."
"What?" Your voice cracks, "Just like that? You want me on your team?"
"What you did in that store was brave," Steve says softly, "You didn't have to do it, and you risked a lot to do it. That makes you a hero. So yeah, just like that."
"Captain Rogers, Mr. Stark is requesting your presence in his lab as soon as you're finished with Ms. (Y/l/n)." You look at Steve, startled at hearing your name from the disembodied female voice that had called out.
"That's F.R.I.D.A.Y.," Steve chuckles, "An AI. I know nothing about it, so if you're curious you'll have to talk to Stark. Anyways, I should probably go see what he wants. Just make yourself at home (Y/n), I'll see you later."
"Bye Steve, thanks for...everything," He gives you a nod and a smile before slipping out of the room, leaving you with Bucky.
"I should probably get going too," Bucky glances down at a watch he wears on his non-metallic wrist, "I'm supposed to meet Romanov down at the shooting range in five. You need anything?"
"Is there anyway you could remind me where my room is?" You ask sheepishly, "This place is a little bigger than what I'm used to."
"No problem," He smiles, "Follow me." You feel a little silly as you make your way back and realize that it does all seem familiar and you probably could've made it on your own. Still, you supposed that you'd rather ask for help then have someone find you lost in the compound. He stops in front of your door before turning to you, "Here we are, anything else I can help with before I head down?"
"No-thank you for showing me though."
"If you need anything else my room is at the end of this hall on the left," He glances at his watch again and starts backing towards where you'd come from, "See you around!" He calls before turning the corner.
"See you," You reply quietly, still looking at where he disappeared. You wonder if he could hear you still. Sighing, you step back into the bedroom, curling up in the center of the bed; your hands were shaking. You had never been a dreamer, but it was becoming increasingly hard to convince yourself this wasn't just an extremely vivid one. Not one thing in your life had ever gone right, so to think this was happening...it was insane. You had just fought Captain America in hand to hand combat and eaten breakfast with the Winter Soldier. You clench your fist and watch as flames engulf it; maybe just this once your abilities could be a blessing instead of a curse. Maybe this time things could go right.