There was a booming knock on my door and I frowned. It was twelve at night, a very peculiar time to come calling. I pulled on my clawed gloves and took out my Taser before stalking to the door, barefoot. I could see silhouettes through the frosted glass next to the doorframe and tilted my head. The shape at the front of the group was tall, broad, had long, straight hair and appeared to be wearing a cape… "Thor?!" I called out hesitantly. It had been a year since Shield was destroyed and four since the Avengers were disbanded. When that happened, I returned to my homeland and I had seen none of my agent or superhero friends since.
"Ellie, please open the door," Thor replied in his deep, rich voice. I squealed in excitement and tossed my weapons onto the hall table, grabbing the keys and unlocking the doors.
I wrenched the door open and jumped. Thor caught me effortlessly, obviously expecting my reaction. "Oh my gosh, I've missed you sooo much!" I exclaimed, squeezing him about his neck and shoulders tightly. Thor carried me inside and stood at the doors, propping them open for his companions.
"Where's my hug?" I pushed away from Thor so he dropped me and faced the other person awaiting me.
"Clint!" I squealed, springing forward into his open arms. "It's great to see you!" Clint kissed the top of my head quickly and let me go. I stepped back to look at the others. Sif, Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg all stood squished together in my narrow entryway. I tilted my head again curiously and thinned my lips at their serious demeanours. "Hmm. I am not so naïve to think you came all the way to Oz for a mere social call." I looked back at the two ex-Avengers and crossed my arms, lifting a brow inquisitively.
"We have a problem," Thor told me gently. "Sif and the Warriors Three came to me three nights prior to now."
"So it's an Asgardian problem," I assumed, looking at the aliens.
"We came to enlist the help of our Prince," Sif told me. She was clearly displeased to see me again. I can't say I was thrilled to have her in my home, either. "There is a false King seated on the throne of Asgard."
"How intriguing," I hummed, smirking. I looked back at Thor. "And you are here for what reason?"
"You are the last of my Midgardian friends that I needed to find. I am here to reassemble the Avengers."
"I am not an Avenger," I responded lowly.
"But you are our friend and ally, Little Warrior. I would not wish to embark upon this quest without you at my side." I smiled shyly, looking down.
"You certainly know how to charm a girl," I told him warmly. "Make yourselves comfortable," I told the group, leading them into the living area. "I'll pack a few things, and then I'll be ready when you are."
"Ellie." I gasped at the distantly familiar voice and turned around. I had been taken to a large estate in Nebraska. There were fields stretched from the grey stone mansion as far as the eye could see without a neighbouring building in sight, apart from the garage.
"Captain!" I squealed, throwing my arms around Steve's neck enthusiastically. Steve hugged me cautiously, obviously worried about damaging me or touching me somewhere he shouldn't. I understood his concern, given the fact that I was quite small, so there wasn't much for him to hang on to.
"It's wonderful to see you!" I laughed, pulling back so Steve let me go. Steve smiled at me sweetly.
"It's wonderful to see you, too, Ellie," he said softly. Arms wrapped around me from behind and I giggled, refusing to look away from Steve as he rolled his eyes.
"Hello, Sweetness," Tony purred.
"Hey, Stark. This place is one of yours, isn't it?"
"Why won't you look at me?" Tony complained, ignoring my query.
"Because if I turn my head, you'll probably kiss me," I responded, giggling at his displeasure. Tony sighed dramatically.
"Fine! No kissing," he relented, letting me go. I turned to face him and put my hand up to catch his face when he tried to catch me off guard. I smirked and Tony pouted, looking at me through my fingers. "Am I that predictable?" he wondered drearily.
"Apparently," I responded, amused. Tony grinned and straightened, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Yes, this is one of my properties, to answer your question," he told me.
"It's lovely; show me around," I commanded, threading my arm through his.
"My pleasure," Tony agreed, leading me away.
"We must catch up later, Steve," I called back. Steve nodded, wandering off.
"And this will be your room while you're staying here," Tony told me, opening a door for me. I had seen the whole house, including where we were keeping a few of the proven Shield Agents, Eric and Phillips among them. I was so excited to find out about their engagement; I had always suspected that they would make a wonderful couple. "Originally, I was going to put you next door to me, but Natasha insisted that I put you next to her, so you've got the connecting doors."
"Remind me to thank her for the rescue," I said, walking into the room. Tony huffed, putting a hand over his chest.
"I'm wounded!" he told me, and I grinned. The door in the side of my room opened and Natasha came through, smiling at me calmly.
"So, you're finally here," she greeted, walking up to me and putting her hands on my arms before kissing my cheek. I responded in kind and embraced her.
"It's great to see you again. What's your name now?" I wondered. Natasha smiled understandingly.
"My name is still Natasha Romanoff. It is anglicised from Natalia Romanova, but you get the idea," Natasha shrugged.
"Okay, then. So where's Bruce? He's the last person I need to see."
"I'll show you the labs," Tony told me. I laughed quietly as Tony led me out.
"Trust you to have this beautiful old mansion and add labs," I remarked. Tony grinned at me.
"Well, I didn't really need the stables, and it seemed a shame to waste the space," he told me.
In the lab, Bruce was typing furiously on a computer, oblivious to the world. I walked up behind him without a word, and slipped my arms around his shoulders. Bruce jumped, turning his bespectacled eyes on me in surprise before registering my appearance and smiling. "Ellie! You came!"
"I do not understand your shock. Why would I not?" I wondered as he turned the desk chair to hug me back.
"Well, after Shield, you sort of… dropped off the radar." I blinked, taken-aback.
"You mean you and Stark haven't been keeping track of me? Does that mean I've been waving at satellites for nothing?" I inquired, looking between the two scientists.
"No, no. We saw you waving. You just moved across the sea and stopped talking to us."
"I didn't mean to fall out of contact with you," I protested. "Besides; you always could have flown over for a visit," I retorted.
"Well, we all know that you like your space, Kid."
"But never mind that, she's back now. We're all back," Bruce reminded us both, smiling at me sweetly. "I'm glad you decided to join us again. It wouldn't be the same without you, Ellie." I grinned and threw my arms around Bruce, cuddling into his shoulder.
"That's so sweet of you to say!" I squeaked, touched by the comment. I was suddenly overtaken by a yawn and blinked sleepily. The boys chuckled.
"Jetlag," Tony surmised. "Come on, Kid. Let's get you back to your room and you can take a little nap, okay?" I nodded, accepting Tony's proffered arm and letting him escort me back to my room. I fell onto the bed and Tony tossed a throw rug over me before leaving, closing the door behind himself. I didn't take too long, and I emerged maybe an hour later, blinking tiredly and running my fingers through my hair when I bumped into someone. A moment later, I had been knocked back to the floor and found myself looking up at a dark figure with a metal arm.
Reacting automatically, I swept his legs out from under him, making him crash into the wall, and rolled on top of him, seeking to restrain his metal limb to protect myself. The man fought back, shoving me away and causing some serious bruising to my ribcage. I struggled to breathe, winded, and the man stood over me, glaring with cold, murky-green eyes. I pulled my Taser from my ever-present belt and prepared to fire when a loud shout made me pause. "Stop!"
"Steve?" I wondered, looking to the Captain as he slowed at the top of the stairs, panting from apparently having raced there from wherever he was.
"This… girl… attacked me," the stranger growled, glaring down at me.
"What the cuss? Excuse me, Crazy Paranoia Guy, what were you doing standing in the middle of the hallway! I walked into you; I didn't attack you! Who the cuss are you, anyway?!" I demanded angrily, standing up and keeping my Taser ready.
Steve sighed heavily. "Bucky, this is the girl I told you about, Ellie. Ellie, this is Bucky."
"Bucky?" I echoed, lowering my Taser and examining the stranger closely. "Bucky Barnes?" The stranger nodded slowly, eyeing me off just as curious and wary as I was. More footsteps sounded, and a dark-skinned man came up the stairs behind Steve.
"Damn, Cap! What is it this time?" the new stranger panted. I scrutinised this newcomer intently as Steve glanced at him.
"Apparently Ellie bumped into Bucky, and they sorta got off on the wrong foot."
"Ah, so this is the famous Ellie Carter," the new stranger said, approaching me with a friendly smile. "Sam Wilson," he introduced himself, holding out his hand. I shook it firmly with a polite smile. "I'm the Falcon; don't know if you've heard about…"
"Of course I have; I was a Shield agent," I pointed out. "I heard all about it." Sam grinned at me, tilting his head before glancing at Steve.
"You know; from what I've heard from Cap and the others, I thought you'd be some cute tweeny kid who wears nothing but pink. But I have to say; you are absolutely gorgeous," Sam told me with a flirtatious wink. I giggled.
"Ease up, Mate. These boys are... rather protective. You keep that up and I won't be able to guarantee that you won't be Hulk-Smashed, hammered, or shot with arrows and repulsors. But you worked with Steve and Tasha, so you probably won't be chained to the ceiling upside down or defenestrated, at least." Sam blinked rapidly.
"I'm sorry, Ma'am. Defenestrated?"
"Thrown out of a window," I clarified, smiling. "Steve could totally do that." Sam laughed a little, looking at Steve again.
"Well, now I feel emasculated," he stated, scratching the back of his neck and looking me over again. I shrugged.
"Sorry. I saw the footage of you with those wings, and you are pretty cool, though." I heard movement behind me and spun on my heel, lifting my Taser and pointing it at Bucky nervously, watching him warily. He paused, looking into my eyes, and slowly lifted his hands, placating.
"Ellie, it's okay," Steve soothed, putting a hand on my upraised arm. "He didn't know; he won't hurt you, okay? He promises; right, Buck?" Bucky nodded silently, still staring at me. Now that he wasn't glaring at me like he wanted to drain my lifeblood, I could see a deep-seated uncertainty clouding his beautiful eyes. I tilted my head and holstered the Taser. Finally, I smiled warmly at Bucky and held out my hand.
"Ellie Jean Carter; pleased to meet you, Mr Barnes." Bucky looked at my offered hand, returned his gaze to my face and walked away without another word, pushing past Steve to go down the stairs.
I watched him go with a quirked eyebrow and Steve turned to me apologetically. "He's more than a little damaged, isn't he?" I asked plainly. Steve nodded reluctantly, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Well, who here isn't?" I smiled, stepping forward to cup Steve's arm. "I can deal with your war buddy, Steve," I informed the Captain gently. "But I don't think he's the only one with problems." Steve blushed at my whisper, meeting my eyes shyly. I pulled on his arm and stood on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. "I'm always around if you need me," I told him, patting his arm and trotting down the stairs. With the Asgardians, reassembling the Avengers, the little Shield collective, and now Bucky, things were going to be eventful, of that I had no doubt. And I was eager to see where these events would take us all…