Inspired by my oneshot, Charm. Even though this is mostly set in the Earth's Mightiest Heroes universe (Avengers lineup of season 1, Hulk and Banner coming to terms, etc.) there will be some influences from the movies and the comics.


"Leana Armen!" Fury's voice boomed through the helicarrier. "I need to speak to you."

"Crap," Leana said under her breath. She tried to avoid the wondering stares from the other SHIELD agents as she got up and walked over to where Fury stood. She tried to read his expression, but he wore the same stern look he always did. She had no idea if this was because of something good or something bad. She had a feeling it was the latter. Leana followed Fury into the meeting room, closing the glass door behind her.

"Please have a seat," Fury said, indicating one of the chairs. Leana wordlessly sat down, dreading what was about to happen.

"It has come to my attention that you seem distracted from your duties lately. Is this true?" Fury asked.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Leana said, unable to think of anything else to say. She did not like Fury's stare. It scares her. She always buckled when she was in trouble from someone higher in rank, and there wasn't many higher in rank than Fury. It was always the same reaction: over-heating, face becoming red in embarrassment, and an inability to think which leads her to feign ignorance as a security measure. In this case, it was more of a case of not knowing what exactly Fury was referring to. Memories flashed in Leana's mind of events that could lead Fury to come to this conclusion, but she couldn't really pin one as THE event that would cause this meeting.

"Just last week, I tasked you with sending an email to the press about the Avenger's latest show of strength. The first thing you do when you sit down at the computer is check the internet for information about the fight. Is this correct?"

"Yes," Leana said quietly, nodding.

"And it has come to my attention that you spend more time looking up information about the Avengers than actually working. Have you forgotten that I have access to the browser histories of every computer in the helicarrier?"

"I'm sorry, Director Fury," Leana meekly said, unable to defend herself without making things worse.

"I am afraid that this is unacceptable behavior for a SHIELD agent," Fury stated. "I ask that you leave all your SHIELD gear in your room. You may pack up your things. When you're ready, an agent will be ready to take you where you need."

Leana nodded, before heading over to the bunkers. She managed to keep a straight face as she walked, though it helped that none of the other agents payed her any attention. She was able to take that walk of shame without being embarrassed by everyone's stares or asked by every other person what happened. As soon as Leana was safe in her room, however, with the door closed, the waterworks started. She sat down on the bed, face in her hands, as she reflected on what exactly happened.

Leana had been a member of SHIELD for about a year now. She applied for the job due to being just out of college, no job, and no way to buy a house to get from out from under her parents' roof. The income for being part of SHIELD was moderate, but what sold her was it provided her with a place to stay where she'd be out of her parents' hair.

Soon after she joined, the Avengers assembled for the first time. Billionaire playboy Tony Stark, Thor, god of thunder, The Hulk, the legendary Captain America, Hank Pym, The Wasp, and eventually Black Panther and Hawkeye. She knew that SHIELD was against the idea of superheroes running free and making a mess while saving the world, but that didn't mean Leana had to be against them. She began to look into them, find out who exactly these people were, and what she found, she liked. A lot. One member in particular. She admired Hawkeye, and his place within the Avengers. There he was, standing amongst the strongest one there is, a man of absolute peak physical condition, and a living god for crying out loud... with a bow and arrows. That was it. And he earned his place on the team time and time again.

Every time there was an alien invasion, or an attack on New York, or they're called out to someplace like Wakanda or even Latveria to deal with something or other, Leana would worry about "Earth's Mightiest Heroes" until she found an online article detailing their victory, or returning to New York in one piece. She knew that if anyone would come back in critical condition or even dead, it would most likely be Hawkeye.

And now she was being kicked off the helicarrier because of this fan-crush on what was no more than a celebrity. It's no different than if she was fired for having a crush on Robert Downey Jr. It was embarrassing.

Before too long, Leana had changed out of her SHIELD uniform and left it on her bed along with other SHIELD-issued equipment, her things were packed and she was ready to go to... well, she didn't have anywhere to go, really. She didn't want to just randomly stop by at her parents' house unannounced for who knows how long. Still, she had to get out of there before Fury got mad at her again. She grabbed her two bags and went out onto the helicarrier deck, looking for her shuttle back down to Earth.

"Ready to go, Ms. Armen?" Agent Coulson asked, walking over in his usual formal way. Figures. He was always saddled with the odd jobs.

"Yeah, I managed to get everything to fit," Leana replied, thankful she managed to get her emotions under control. After an emotional breakdown like what she just had, it was a wildcard if she was going to cry again upon opening her mouth. This time, she managed to stay under control. It was probably due in part to Coulson's oddly calming aura. If he ever judges anyone, he never shows it and gives the same face to everyone, regardless of who or what they are or claim to be.

Leana followed Agent Coulson to the small quinjet that he would take her down to Earth in. "Where will I be taking you?" he asked.

"Uh, the Hilton in New York City, I guess. I need to find a place," Leana told him as he helped her get her two bags into the jet.

"Alright."

The ride itself was awkwardly silent. At least, it was for Leana. It was probably pleasantly silent for Coulson.

After Coulson dropped her off at the hotel (the reactions from the other guests regarding a mini-jet landing in he parking lot were rather amusing), Leana got herself checked in and dropped her stuff off in her room. The first thing she did was take her long, brown hair out of the bun that all Female SHIELD agents with long hair wear. That was one thing Leana won't miss about SHIELD - she hated putting her hair up every day. She ran her fingers through her hair, currently more wavy than usual because of the bun, before heading back out.

A few doors over, Leana found a bar. She decided to check it out, feeling instantly out of place. This was a new experience for her. She'd been too busy with SHIELD stuff when she turned 21, so this would be her first time in a bar of any kind. She walked up to the counter and sat at the end of the table. "What will it be?" the bartender asked.

Leana shrugged. "I don't know any of the terms yet. Something weak with a strawberry flavor."

A guy sat next to her, obviously too far gone drunk already. Leana tried to ignore him as he looked her up and down, thankfully stopping at her face instead of anywhere else his eyes could've stopped. "I like me girls with big brown eyes, but it's so hard to come up with a pickup line for brown eyes, y'know?" he asked. It took Leana a moment to realize that he was trying to hit on her in his own drunken way.

"Try chocolate, or deer eyes," Leana replied. She was too nice to tell this guy to leave her be, but she tried to show him through body language that she was NOT interested. Obviously, he didn't take the hint.

"Hey, that's smart! Pretty and smart girl, even better," the man commented. She looked up at the bartender as he handed her a drink, and she gave him the amount of money he asked for. The moment that exchange was over, Leana stood up and walked around a little with her drink to hopefully get away from the creepy man.

Leana noticed a small crowd gathering on the other side of the room. She took a couple sips of her drink as she wandered over to see what the commotion was about.

The first thing she noticed was the crowd itself - mostly girls. Then she noticed the male voice emanating from the middle of the crowd.

"It was even designed with my own sense of humor," the voice said. Leana recognized the voice, but couldn't quite place it. "Now I don't know where I'd be without JARVIS."

Suddenly, realization hit Leana. It sounded like Tony Stark. Did she really just get lucky enough to randomly wander into a bar on the same night as THE Tony Stark, from The Avengers? She managed to weave through the crowd with minimal pushing and shoving (mostly others pushing and shoving her), and sure enough, in the middle of the crowd sat Tony Stark, with a half-drank beer by his hand and an empty bottle nearby.

Leana stood, gaping like all the other girls, until she felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked around, finding the same guy who had tried to hit on her, now obviously angry.

"That was rude," he stated. "I just wanted to talk, and you just walk away? That's shitty manners."

"I'm sorry. I thought you just wanted advice on how to pick up brown-eyed girls," Leana said in the most innocent voice she could muster.

"That most certainly was not my aim, and you know it," the man said, raising his voice and attracting the attention of some of Tony's group. Leana, however, remained calm.

"Sir, if you expect me to get your intentions, you should be able to get mine. I am not interested," Leana stated. "I tried to be nice about it at first, but you didn't get it."

"That's bull. You weren't nice about it at all!" the man insisted, his voice continuing to grow in volume.

"Get lost," Tony's voice sounded from behind Leana. She couldn't help but swoon, just a little, though she didn't let it show beyond a small smile,

"Just who do you think you are?" the drunk man spat.

"I know exactly who I am. I'm surprised you don't. Tony Stark. Billionaire playboy philanthropist. Iron Man. Ringing any bells?"

The man scowled, seemingly unsure what to make of the situation, before stalking off in defeat.

"Well, that was anti-climactic," Tony commented. "Won't be bothering you any more, or at least shouldn't."

"Thank you," Leana thanked, smiling. "Though, if worst came to worst, I could've dealt with him myself."

"Well, which is more fun: getting into a fight, or having me chase him off?" Tony asked.

"Depends on how much room I'd have to fight."

"Have a name?"

"Leana Armen."

"Name sounds familiar. Have I in the past rescued you or tried to romance you?"

"Well, I'm certainly glad it's not the latter, because then I'd be compelled to slap you for not remembering." Leana laughed a little at her own joke - just a couple sips, and suddenly everything's funny. "Nah, I work at SHIELD. Er, I did. You might recognize my name from something to do with them."

"That could explain things," Tony said, thinking. "What'd you do to get yourself kicked out of that flying cage?"

"Distracted on the job," Leana simply replied. And the less said about THAT the better.

"Ouch, cardinal sin in Fury-land."

"Yeah, so now I'm stuck in a hotel until I can find myself a place to live."

"This may just be the beer talking, but you can live in the Avengers Mansion," Tony suggested. "I'm sure the others wouldn't mind. Trust me, we've had house-guests before, and I can already tell you'd be a saint compared to some of them."

Leana's eyes widened and she grinned. "Really? Thank you so much! I already booked the night at the hotel, so tomorrow?"

Tony nodded. "I'll send Happy over with one of my cars to drive you over. You'll be able to figure out which it is, trust me. Just look for the dwarf."

Leana snorted in laughter. She knew who Happy was and knew that he was not, in fact, a dwarf. "Alright, so how will I find your car, really?"

"Oh trust me, you'll know it when you see it."

"Got it," Leana confirmed with a nod. "You should probably go back to paying attention to your fangirls there. I'm starting to get glares." She walked a little ways so that she was on the outskirts of the group that surrounded Tony and sat down so she could finish her drink, close enough to still be amused by Tony but far enough away to mostly avoid gathering unwanted attention.

Once her drink was finished, she headed back to the hotel to try to get some sleep.