Welcome to Part Four of our little universe! We hope you're enjoying what was have so far. :)

Chapter 1: Million Dollar Kid

July 20

SHIELD Base Two

The intel that had come in wasn't the best of news, and Fury wasn't exactly excited to share it, but he knew it was the kind of thing that couldn't just be left alone.

Stark had been successfully blocking all of the Capitol's broadcasts from going any further than the Capitol itself, but news was leaking out all the same. Ronan was healed enough to make threats not only to the kids that he'd had in his grasp, or even to the rest of those in Tahiti but also to Mac — and the new president was stepping in personally to aid in the hunt.

So far, they were entirely off base and looking the wrong way, which he was glad to see, but with Mac asking to join in the fight as more of a regular combatant, he needed to know all of the risks that were on the table. The worst of which, of course, was the bounty on his head.

He had been waiting just a few minutes before the Hudsons arrived in his office, both of them wearing identical looks of concern — afraid that they were getting more bad news on Logan, no doubt. "Thank you for coming to see me so quickly," Fury said as he gestured for the couple to take a seat. "There have been a few new developments you should be aware of."

The expression Heather was wearing was hard to misinterpret, though, so Fury quickly cleared the air. "Logan is fine. Last I heard, he was holed up in the woods ignoring the outside world."

Heather let out the breath she'd been holding and glanced at Mac before she nodded. "Well if it's not him, then what's going on?" she asked.

"Facial recognition identified your husband to Ronan," Fury said. "Not that it was hard to come by, considering his extensive file on record with the Sentinels. What we didn't expect was that he had apparently done a lot of research on Logan — and he's figured out the familial connection. You're near the top of his hit list."

Heather looked downright concerned as Mac raised an eyebrow. "How near?"

Fury looked between the two of them and kept Mac's gaze. "Right below Logan."

Mac seemed to think it over before he just nodded and shrugged. "Sounds about right."

"Oh, there it is," Fury said sarcastically. "Now I see the family resemblance. All stubborn and 'bring it'."

"Well what else do you want me to do about it? I'm not going to apologize to that creep, and I'm not going to stop making life miserable for him."

"No, and you shouldn't," Fury agreed. "I just … couldn't see it until today." He let out a sigh and shook his head. "I just wanted to let you know so you could adjust your commitment to the fight if need be — and also to let you know that apparently something that your cousin said seemed to have gotten Ronan a little more … pushy than usual. He's joined in the hunt himself."

"Of course he did," Heather said, sounding almost annoyed. "What on earth got him so…" She waved a hand. "Wound up?"

"Logan called both Ronan and Thanos cowards to their faces," Fury told them. "For hiding behind their guards. He seems to have taken it to heart."

"He's not wrong," Mac said unapologetically as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"So Ronan decided to step up to the forefront," Heather said, shaking her head before she glanced at Mac with the slightest smirk. "I should have come with you and made sure you finished the thing properly."

Fury looked more than a little surprised at that. "I'm reasonably sure that at least one of you will want to stick around to take care of those kids …"

"Did I say I wasn't planning on coming back?" she accused Fury.

"No, ma'am," he said, shaking his head. "But if you insist on hunting down the royals with the rest of them, I'm going to insist that only one of you is in the field at a time."

She tipped her head at him for a moment and then nodded. "Fair enough."

"You also may want to put in some training with Agent May," he suggested. "To take it a step above the Sentinel training I'm sure your husband taught you."

"I think I will, thank you," she said decisively.

"Seeing as he's threatening your two favorite guys," Mac said under his breath her way.

"Which you know I won't stand for," she whispered his way with a little smirk as she squeezed his arm.

"Then I'll let you know if I have any missions coming up that you could try out," Fury agreed. "In the meantime, I think that Tony Stark may want to work something up for you. He's been on a roll making individualized weapons. Coulson will take you down to his workshop soon."

"Yes, Skye did tell me about Tony Stark's toys," Heather said with a little grin.

"Then you know how specific he tends to be," Fury said with a nod. "Be careful, both of you."

July 21

In the Capitol

It was amazing, Natasha reflected, how single-minded obsession could make her job so much easier.

With Ronan occupied with revenge, he was relying on Natalie for just about everything. Details, intelligence gathering — when he wasn't meeting with generals trying to bring the districts to heel, he was out actively searching for Logan, Mac, and anyone else on his list, so the everyday operations more or less fell to her.

Which was the way she wanted it, really. SHIELD was making huge inroads into Hydra with Natasha sending them Capitol intelligence on both sides. And as for the kids — Natasha had figured out fairly quickly where they were, and every single bit of data she handed Ronan sent him elsewhere ... or elsewhen, in some cases.

Facial recognition had picked up Mac Hudson exactly where Natalie's intelligence had said he would be — but earlier than she'd indicated. More than likely, Ronan had passed Mac flying out with his team — a couple victors and some younger kids they were training — on the way out of District Five after a good raid on Hydra.

And if the reports Natalie was seeing were true, then the inevitable had happened: Ronan lost his temper. And Hydra was hurting because of it, since if he couldn't have his prize, he would at least leave destruction in his wake.

She had to be careful not to play that card too often, but it was still almost enjoyable to send him off to drop him like a bomb on Hydra. He had no idea — and she kept it that way. At least, it was enjoyable sending him off and reading the reports — but when he came back in all huffy over being 'just barely too late' again, he was a pain to deal with.

He was already snipping at his lieutenants for not flying fast enough or not prepping fast enough before they left or whatever else he could think to blame them for — and she knew she was probably next on his parade of people to yell at, so she just started out with a little stack of reports before he could get rolling.

"Facial recognition picked him up on his way out, and we were able to track the jet up until it hit SHIELD airspace. The technical division still can't penetrate their blackout devices, though — so we don't know where he went after that. SHIELD jets aren't flying back in a pattern, either — the last one we tracked when in totally the opposite direction before we lost it." She said the whole thing in a rush, and while he was still clearly upset, it was enough to make him pause — if only to take in the new information for a moment.

"I don't care what we don't know," he snapped irritably. "I want results, not excuses."

She startled just the slightest at his anger and lowered her gaze immediately. "Of course sir ... I didn't …" She backed up a few steps, her files clutched to her chest as she did so.

He glared her way for a moment, watching her reaction before he shook his head. "And what of the others? Have even one of those wretched SHIELD whelps shown their faces?"

Natalie rearranged the files in her arms as she nodded quickly. "There have been a few hits on the known Tahiti operatives — none of the ones you had before, but you did them such damage…" She glanced up for only half a second before looking back down again. "I don't doubt they are still hiding and recovering."

He paused as he considered it, a smug smile crossing his face as he slowly nodded. "Yes," he said, almost entirely to himself. "That must be it."

"There were a few victors in the mix this time as well," Natalie offered. "It seems the children are mixing with their elders more."

"Which ones?" he asked with a frown.

"Most of the younger ones. Chavez, as you know — and Rhodes as well. Our cameras haven't caught Jessica Drew, but reports put her on the ground."

"Pests," he said, sounding almost like a curse.

She nodded her agreement quietly. "I'm sure they can't elude you forever, sir. It's just sheer luck that's gotten them this far," she said soothingly.

"Their luck will run out soon enough," he agreed as he headed toward his office. "Any further intel you get — bring straight to me."

"Yes, sir. As soon as I get it," she promised quickly.

July 23

District Seven

Seven had been absolutely beautiful for the duration of the trip that Logan and Skye had taken there. They'd been just soaking in the essence of the woods' the scent of pine and wild rose was thick in the air, and the overall feel of the place in the summer was just … gorgeous.

Lupines and fireweed were blooming all around the cabin, along with a dozen other amazing wildflowers that Skye simply hadn't seen before.

For the most part, they had nothing to occupy their time but simply relaxing and taking care of each other, and Skye had gotten into the habit of enjoying more than the scenery when Logan headed off to wash up in the lake, though she didn't say anything about it.

There was one pop-up thunderstorm that blew in off the mountain just before a heavy fog that had put an almost eerie feel to the air, but it did nothing to dampen the fire that they had going that evening, and the two of them were frankly enjoying themselves in relative quiet.

"You must be bored out of your mind by now," Logan said as he watched Skye poke at the fire.

"Are you kidding me?" she said with a little smirk as she looked over at him. "I love it here. It's just so … calming. And the whole district smells like pine trees. It's nice."

He had to chuckle at that as she tossed the stick in and just snuggled into his side. "Even without the wifi?" he asked with an eyebrow raised as he turned his head to watch her reaction.

"There are more important things than wifi," she said with a little smirk. "Not much … but still."

He let out a sigh and leaned toward her to rest his head on the top of hers. "You know I love you, right?" he muttered into her hair.

She startled the slightest bit before she just… started to babble a bit. "I mean — that's not something you assume — and I just — you can't just say — out of nowhere — I mean yeah, but—"

"Relax; I'm not expecting anything," he replied. "Just wanted you to know, in case you missed it."

"No, that's not — I just meant I wasn't—" She flushed and bit her lip. "You just took me off-guard."

"Good," he chuckled. "You need it."

"Get a break from always knowing everything from being the director, right?" she teased, finding her footing a little better now.

"Something like that."

She laughed and rested her head deeper underneath his for a long moment before she said, very quietly, "You keep me on my toes. Must be why I love you too."

"You love the picking."

"That too," she said with a little smirk.

"You have enough of the fire, or are you not quite ready to call it a night, director?"

"Well, if you're going to sit here and say nice things to me, I'll keep by the fire, thanks," she had to tease.

"You don't want to set limits like that, or I might only say nice things by the fire," he countered.

"You do and I'll start setting fire to things randomly just to hold you to it," she promised.

"Sounds like fun," he chuckled. "I'll have to get you a lighter."

"I'll carry it with me everywhere. Coulson will think I've turned pyromaniac."

He smiled at her for a moment. "You're already thinking of what you can light on fire, aren't you?"

"There are a surprising amount of flammable objects on base. I mean, here it's just wood everywhere — that's easy."

"Yeah, don't start a forest fire, please."

"I won't. Campfires are much better anyway," she promised, chuckling quietly to herself at the idea.

"Then I guess we better stick by the fire for a while," Logan said. "Just in case I come up with something else."

July 26

SHIELD Base Two

"You ready for this?" Peter asked as he and Scott made their way down to the locker rooms. "I mean, I know you've done this stuff for the creeps? But I think we run it a little differently, and you don't have to if you don't want to … I just … are you ready for this?"

"I appreciate the attempt to give me an out, but I really do think I can help," Scott said with one eyebrow raised. "I can't just ignore the fact that there's a war on, so I'd better be ready to do my part, don't you think?"

"Well when you put it like that," Peter said under his breath. "I guess we better get your armor figured out. Won't do to bring you back with an injury first real mission out."

Scott had to smirk at that and nod his agreement. "Yeah, I guess the big rush to kill Thanos doesn't count. More spur of the moment than anything."

"Well, technically, it could qualify, since from what I heard, you did talk with the director beforehand …"

"Just happened to be there when he came to tell Mac and Heather what was going on," Scott admitted. "Though, if I'd been here… I'd still have wanted to come."

"We should have plenty of chances to go after Hydra, so … let's call this your … second mission." Peter started, just handing him gear when they got to the lockers. "This ought to fit you right, I think."

"Alright then." Scott looked over the gear as he tried it on and was pleased to find that the larger sizes fit him better now. He'd been going to the gym as often as he could — but he also knew Heather was to blame for gaining back everything he'd lost under Essex, and probably a little more.

When the boys got to the hangar, Quill and Clint were shooting rock, paper, scissors — and both of them were getting more and more irritated as it went on. "Just … shoot paper for once, please," Quill said. "How the heck am I supposed to beat you and fly pilot if you actually keep trying."

"I did shoot paper, and you decided to go rock the one time I did, come on."

Quill made a noise of annoyance as the two younger members of their team made their appearance. "Peter!" Quill shouted with a grin.

"Peter!" was the almost immediate response with a matching grin.

"Do they do this every time?" Scott had to ask Clint as he climbed into the jet behind Peter.

"Ye-ep."

"Oh, and you brought the Million Dollar Kid with you; that's just great," Quill said as he headed up to the co-pilot chair. "About time we got some miles out of him."

"The … what?" Scott turned to look Quill's way with one eyebrow raised.

"Trust me, it's .. well... just roll with it," Quill said. "It's not a knock, okay?"

Scott kept up the raised-eyebrow look as he sat down. "You know, most nicknames are at least understood by the people you give them to… and I'm really not a nickname kind of person."

"Well maybe I'll explain it to you later, but now is not the time, Million Dollar Kid."

"Can you not?" Scott asked. "Just call me Scott."

"Nope!" Quill sang out. "That's how I know you in my head, don't mess with it."

Clint chuckled as he got ready to put them in the air — since he'd won piloting rights with the game of rock, paper, scissors. "Alright, children, has everyone gone to the bathroom before we left? No one left anything?"

"Are you going to try to hold my hand if I say no?" Quill asked with a grin. "Because if that's the case, I'd hold it. The need to go to the bathroom, that is."

Clint laughed at that and shook his head. "You're not my type anyway, Quill. I only date smart blondes."

"Makin' up for a deficit?"

"You know it. Can you imagine two of me? That would just… be horrible."

"I'd rather not," Quill admitted before he turned to look over his shoulder. "Peter! You ready for this?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely, Peter."

"Sweet!" Quill replied. "You know they just wanted this one to go super smooth so they had both Peters involved. It was just to be extra good." He turned to Scott. "So, Million Dollar Kid, it's just going to be you, me, and Petey here. Think you can follow directions okay?"

"Better than you can — I told you not to call me that," Scott said, shaking his head.

"Hey. If you don't like my nicknames, I'm sure you can just wait for Logan to give you one. He seems to rename just about everyone," Quill said off handedly.

"Yeah, already got one of those, thanks. I like the name I have," Scott said dryly.

"What is it?" Peter asked from right next to him. "Is it bad?"

Scott frowned slightly and then shrugged. "Don't think so," he said. "He called me 'Slim' back in Seven, but ... well. Haven't heard him use it in a while."

"Have you been around him in a while?" Peter asked. "Because ... he can't use it if he doesn't see you. Though it's my experience that he just doesn't forget them. Ever."

Scott shrugged. "Actually, haven't really seen him around," he had to admit. "I'm sure I see him more than usual, being with Mac and Heather, but you guys actually live with him."

"Yeah, we don't see him much either, to be honest," Peter said. "He tries to be out on missions all the time. Or super secret training. He's really not … here."

"Then how does everyone get a nickname?" Scott asked with a smirk.

"They don't," Peter said. "He only gives them out to people he likes."

Scott frowned. "You sure about that?"

"I don't think I've ever heard him take the time to come up with one for someone he dislikes." He paused. "Unless … you know. I guess he may have done it if he knew it was going to tweak someone. But those … they don't stick. Like... one-time uses."

"Well there you go," Scott said. "That must be it.'

"I doubt that's the case," Peter tried to assure him before he tried to change the subject when it was clear Scott didn't think much of his assessment. "So. Coulson said you were a real tactical-minded kind of guy. That's … useful."

Scott shrugged. "It's an acquired skill," he said with the slightest of smirks. "You've met Elsie, haven't you?"

"I have," Peter laughed. "She's something else."

"Now imagine about thirty kids in one cramped place — you learn how to keep things organized and running really fast."

"I'm sure," Peter said. "But you know, if you want to practice that stuff, some of the other 'tactical' kids play chess. You should join them. I'll bet you'd be good at it."

"You play?" Scott asked, genuinely curious.

"A little bit," he admitted. "Tony and Bruce are the real ones to watch out for, though."

"I may have to try that," Scott said with a nod, settling back as the four occupants of the jet headed off to Ten — though most of that time was spent with Clint and Quill joking back and forth the entire time.

"Okay kiddies!" Quill called back once they'd arrived. "Time to go get some intel, maybe beat up a few bad guys along the way. We gotta leave our little blonde birdie in the nest and go do all the work." As he spoke, he adjusted something at his belt, and in an instant, the image shimmered, and Peter Quill was no longer blonde and recognizable but brunette, older, graying, and looking like a senior SHIELD agent rather than a former victor.

Clint smirked Quill's way. "Try not to have all the fun without me."

"Oh, I'm having all the fun, and I'm doing it twice just because you can't," Quill countered.

"That is hurtful, Quill. Just hurtful. And here I thought you'd be grateful I shot your father-in-law."

"Oh, I am, especially since you guys came back with such great play-by-plays and stories that I will cherish forever for not being there."

Clint chuckled and leaned back. "Just return the favor, huh? Took me forever just to get them to let me out for piloting."

"You want me to kill your father-in-law? I had no idea you were married," Quill teased.

"Oh yeah. Sweet little girl next door," Clint nodded seriously, though he couldn't quite hold the look and broke into a teasing grin.

"So you're cheating on Bobbi?" Quill asked as he went back to the others. "That's rude."

Clint chuckled. "Hard to cheat if she's not here, Quill," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's an emotional affair. Obviously."

"Obviously. Me and this nonexistent lady are so involved," Clint snorted, waving them off.

"C'mon, Peter," Quill said before he dropped a hand on each of their shoulders. "Million Dollar Kid. Time to go."

"That's never going to go away, is it?" Scott muttered, and Peter shook his head brightly.

"No idea what that's all about but … I kinda like it," Peter admitted.

Scott shook his head at both of the Peters with a look of longsuffering as the three of them made their way down to where intelligence suggested there was a Hydra base.

And there was, in fact, a Hydra base — but they were surprised to find when they got there that it was in the middle of being evacuated. Scores of green-clad soldiers were unloading what looked like lab equipment, while others in white coats rushed around fretting to be sure that the soldiers didn't break anything crucial to their research.

"Looks like they knew we were coming," Scott muttered with a small frown.

"That's okay; we'll just grab whatever we can and shoot anyone that tries to stop us, right?" Quill said. "Let's not make this thing a bust. And … break some of the stuff they're trying to protect. That'll be good."

"Let's focus on breaking the equipment," Scott agreed.

"Agreed, rampant property damage," Peter said. "This … I can do." He grinned at Scott. "This is actually something that I excel at."

"Great, then you focus on the stuff they've already loaded. We'll make sure they don't load anything else," Scott said, motioning between himself and Quill.

"Lookit you all trying to take charge," Quill said as he clapped a hand on Scott's shoulder. "Alright then, let's try it your way and see what happens. Man. They really weren't kidding about you, were they?"

Scott turned to give Quill a dry look. "If you have an alternate plan, I'm all ears."

"No no, that sounds pretty much like what I said, just more uptight and precise," He was nodding his head and gesturing forward. "No really, come on, Million Dollar Kid, let's do it."

Scott paused just long enough to give Quill a look for the continuing nickname before the three of them burst into action — with Peter webbing up trucks and breaking vials and the other two making a rush for the soldiers and scientists who were still unloading. The main objective wasn't so much the personnel but the equipment, which meant the two of them spent half their time shooting crates and other things as the scientists and soldiers got more and more frustrated with how much they were losing to the three young men.

It wasn't long before the soldiers for the most part just started a heavy push to load up everything they could get their hands on while a small group of them tried to pick off the three kids. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before they realized that the kids had on some pretty substantial armor and their shots weren't doing much to them.

A couple soldiers ran in — obviously in an attempt to distract or slow the boys down so they could finish their job — with the intention of capturing them if they could. The one that rushed Peter was greeted with a little 'eep' before he webbed his hands to his sides and his feet to the ground. "It's really not nice to sneak up on your friendly neighborhood Spider-man, guys!"

He'd barely delivered his line before another two soldiers rushed over and tackled him, which, amazingly, proved to be a very bad idea on their part when it was brought to light that Peter Parker was apparently some kind of genius when it came to wrestling moves.

In no more than five strikes, he'd managed to twist his way out of their hold and knock both of them out cold, though he was frantically looking around him, just waiting to nail anyone who came close again.

"Holy crap, Spider-man," Quill said. "That … was pretty frikkin' amazing!"

"Didn't know you were trained for wrestling," Scott agreed with a little smirk.

"I … am not," Peter admitted. "Not really. I mean .. I guess years of trying to slip out of noogies and wedgies will do that to a guy …"

Quill just had to chuckle at that as he and Scott worked their way through the soldiers a little closer to where Peter was, though Scott paused when he saw a particularly dense knot. "They're not protecting equipment there. They're protecting a person," he said Quill's way.

"Not for long," Peter said as he started shooting webbing toward the bundle of men. "Stick 'em to the ground; see how they like that."

"Not all of us have webbing," Scott pointed out, though he and Quill were doing a fine job of pushing through the soldiers their own way — with guns and fists.

The men that Peter had webbed were stuck, but by no means was the man they were protecting. Once a couple men were webbed to the spot, the soldiers outside of the knot moved to neutralize Peter — drawing his attention off of the mystery man and forcing him to go on the offensive.

"I got this guys! I'm … I'm fine!" Peter shouted out between ducking and punching.

Scott just had to shake his head at that as he moved to catch up to Peter. "There's nothing wrong with asking for help," he called back his way as he did so.

An echoing 'Ack!' was the response as Peter twisted to dodge between two men, popping up on the other side of them before he threw an elbow into one of their faces. "No really, I'm good!"

Scott paused and had to shake his head for a moment before redirecting. If Peter said he was fine… he'd just keep an eye on things. Instead, he switched back toward where Quill was working to get hold of the dumpy scientist that the soldiers were protecting — as the glasses-wearing man shrieked at the soldiers to protect him better.

"Oooh, we found the prize in the middle," Quill called out. "Come on, Million Dollar Kid — live up to your title!" Quill was alternating between shooting soldiers and bare-knuckle brawling to get to the man, but it was clear he needed help to finish the job.

Scott only just bit back the comment on how that was not his name as he rushed in to help, not only shooting soldiers but also putting a few tricks into play that Mac had shown him since he got to the SHIELD base. Between the two of them, they were able to deal with the soldiers quickly, and when the mousy little man tried to dash away, Scott all but tackled him to keep him there.

"There we go," Quill shouted. "Cuff him!" He turned to Peter. "Unless Web-head can get over here and stick him."

Scott shook his head, already pulling the man's arms behind his back. "See if he needs help, would you?"

"Oh, I forgot you're running this mission. Right," Quill replied, rolling his eyes. "But he looks pretty good to me. Did you know he could flip like that from a standing position?" Quill had his hands on his hips as he watched Peter take down the last couple of guys trying to grab him. "Man, that kid is flexible."

Scott pulled their prisoner to his feet and followed Quill's gaze, unable to stop the smirk when he did. "I don't think he even realizes it," he said.

"That's … amazing. I can't even think of a better word for it," Quill said, shaking his head. When Peter flipped backwards, kicking the last assailant in the chin and knocking him out cold before landing on his feet, Quill just started to clap. "Where's a camera when you need one?"

Peter looked surprised for a second before he broke into a huge grin and started to bow dramatically. "Thank you, thank you!"

"That was truly amazing, Spider-Man. Honestly, you're going to need to add that to your name."

"The Amazing Spiderman…." Peter repeated it a couple times to himself and then nodded. "Yes. Yes, I think I'm keeping it."

"You bet your webshooters you are," Quill replied. "The guys that work with me have to have good titles; isn't that right, Million Dollar Kid?"

"That's not my name," Scott said, starting to get a little irritated now.

"Well I say it fits," Quill replied.

"That's your opinion," Scott said. "But it's my name."

"It's fact, and like I said before, that's how I know you, so suck it up," Quill replied before he took one of the scientist's arms. "How about we get this little creep back to base — or do you need to decide how we walk there first?"

Scott gave him a look. "Aren't you mission leader? Lead the way."

Quill just shook his head and let out a breath. This kid was going to irk him the way he was going. But Quill really didn't want to deal with things that way. "What do you think, Spidey, if we're acting as a team? You ready to go — or did you want to astound us with more flips and amazing kicks?"

"I mean, I can, but then you guys would feel left out," Peter said with a little grin.

"Well alright then, let's head out, Amazing Spider-Man."

When they got back to the plane, where Clint was waiting, bow in hand, Quill just had to grin. "You wouldn't believe these two, blonde Hawkeye," he said. "The Million Dollar Kid is pretty good to keep around in a fight — believe it or not — and the Amazing Spider-Man here … just … wow."

"Coulda told you that," Clint said with an easy grin as he leaned back. "Wouldn't let Katie run around with him if he wasn't up to snuff."

"He was doing backflips to kick guys!" Quill said with a grin.

Clint grinned and turned to face Peter better. "That true, Spidey? You trying to make the rest of us look bad?"

"Just .. keep raising the bar, that's all," Peter said as he brushed his hand off on his chest.

Clint chuckled before he waved Quill up to copilot. "C'mon. Your Trillion Dollar Boy can watch our new friend — let's get back home, huh?"

"That's not my…" Scott let out a noise of frustration as he shook his head.

"I don't know," Quill said. "Got a nice ring to it."

"Platinum ring," Clint agreed.

Quill pointed one finger at Clint. "Yes. That. That exactly."

Scott glanced at Peter and slowly shook his head. "I'm starting to think Coulson put me on this team to put me off," he muttered.

"What did you do to get Quill picking on you?" Peter asked quietly.

"I don't even know. If I did, I'd … try to fix it somehow," Scott admitted.

"You had to do something," Peter reasoned. "I've never seen him insist on picking like that."

"I really didn't," Scott insisted. "As far as I know, all I've done is get stuck on a team with him and before that, saw him on the roof in the Capitol. That's it."

"That's not enough, I don't think," Peter said with a frown. "Maybe if you asked …"

"Yeah, no. It's fine," Scott said, waving him off.

"And maybe I'd believe you? If you didn't have that look on your face every time he says it," Peter said. "But you do, so I can't … you understand my problem here, right?"

Scott let out a breath and shook his head. "Look, I don't know," he said. "And I'm starting to think Quill's the only one in on his own joke."

Clint smirked from the cockpit and turned the slightest bit to raise an eyebrow their way. "C'mon, Silver-Coated Kiddo," he said. "You're supposed to be smart."

"Platinum," Quill corrected.

"Right. Platinum-Coated Smarty Pants," Clint agreed with a nod. "I mean, think about it for five seconds. Quill's a victor, right? Gotta know behind-the-scenes stuff. And anybody with half a brain knows those glasses you got probably cost a mint." Clint stared at Scott for a moment. "C'mon. I'm an idiot, and I figured it out."

Scott stared at him for a moment and then looked to Quill. "What, you do this to every kid who got an expensive gift during the Games?"

"The only ones that came even close to that level were entire groups," Quill replied. "So I'm a little curious to see what all the fuss was about."

"Search me," Scott said with a shrug. "Didn't make sense to me either; I knew going in I wasn't going to get out. Not allying with a Creed. Not being from Seven. So I don't know why people wasted the money."

"Wow," Quill said, just shaking his head and turning to face forward.

The subject dropped — at least for the time being — and the four of them headed back to base, where Coulson took the bespectacled scientist into custody.

"Arnum Zola," Coulson said with a frown that clearly said he recognized the guy. "Head of Hydra's research division."

"Where do you want him?" Quill asked, still wearing his image inducer.

"We'll take him into high priority custody," Coulson said with a little smirk. "And make sure it slips that he's been talking with us," he added as Zola looked downright terrified by the very concept.

"You got it, boss," he replied as he and Clint headed out, with Zola between them.