One
"Miss Lorita, there's a man wearing a suit at the front desk asking for you. Is he your boyfriend?" overzealous Zola asks in a sing-song tone.
"Ooo, Miss Lorita has boyfriend?" Mercé croons
"What does he look like! Is he handsome!" Mio joins,
"Girls! I don't have a boyfriend. What's with your heads this morning?" I intervene before they get any other 'creative' ideas. It's only eight in the morning and their twelve year old bodies are filled with too much energy.
"I'll be back, warm up and Manuela will lead routine seven." They all groan at the mention of routine seven but follow my instructions. I leave the dance studio and head down the ridiculously long hallway to the front desk. And the whole time I'm walking I imagine exactly who could be waiting for me, unfortunately I have an accurate intuition-which was correct once again. None other than Phil Coulson smiles at me, holding a black tablet in hand and holding it out for me to take-as if I have a choice.
"Well, if it isn't Philly roll. How has life been, huh? Shield been treatin' you well?"
"Life is hectic, as usual, and I can't believe you still remember that stupid nickname." He replies and further urges the tablet into my hand, which I still refuse to touch.
"So, you here for a little reminiscin' or somethin'?"
"No, Shield needs you."
"You guys know that I'm retired, right?"
"We're well aware." And he physically forces the tablet in my hand. I groan, wondering what the hell they want this time. I power on the device, instantly all the secrets I need to see appear on the screen. My eyes and mouth open wide, and I nearly drop the tablet; in big bold letters are the words Avengers Initiative.
"I thought the project was trashed." I say scrolling through the info, now completely interested. I see a gif of a massive bulking green figure tearing apart a city.
"There has been a, uh, big problem. And this may be the only way to solve it."
"What kind of problem?" I frown when seeing a gif of the God of Thunder.
"An other-worldly problem. You remember when that blonde thunder guy appeared couple years ago?"
"Yeah." I was there, silly Philly, how could I forget.
"Another guy like him showed up and he's not so friendly."
"You're leaving? Why!" Malak, the youngest of the group, whines.
"Is it that man! Do I need to give him a piece of my mind!" Zola yells,
"Oh, we'll all give him a piece!" Kimiko, who's just as crazy as Zola, rants and all the girls, excluding Manuela, stomp towards the lobby.
"Now now girls, please listen to teacher, for once." I demand seriously, really wanting to shout but it would do no good. They quit their foolish behavior and sit before me, all pouting like babies.
"I'm well aware the dance competition is a week away, that's why I've called Miss Maiha to substitute for me."
"What! that old bat!" Mio says and earns the evil eye from me, shutting her up for good.
"Trust me, with her supervision you'll do just fine. We'll keep in touch through Skype, and I'll definitely watch the competition on tv. I know this is sudden but it's an emergency and I have to go. I don't have a choice." I emphasize the last part.
"When will you be back?" Manuela, the only calm one of the group, asks sadly.
"It, uh, may be a couple of weeks. But I promise to watch your performance, which means you've gotta promise to kick butt!"
"'Course we will!" Zola cheers.
"That's what I'm talkin' about! Spirit! Lets bring it in girls." We all gather in a circle, each hand placed on top of another in the center.
"You girls have absolute talent. You've won eight out of eight competitions and now its time to win the one that matters most. There's only one way to the top and the best way is through success. Don't win this for me, win this to achieve the goal you've all worked super hard for. So, what are you gonna do!"
"Win" they all yell.
"You think Fury missed me?" I ask Philly, who chuckles nervously. Yep, he did not miss me at all. When I was a Shield agent I had a practiced tendency to not follow orders. But the job always got done, in my own special way.
"So, is there a reason why we're going to New York?" just before boarding a private plane I overheard the pilots talking about the quickest route there.
"To get Stark."
"…Stark…as in Tony Stark?"
"Yes the guy that really dislikes you." Well, joy, when did they make him an Avenger? I thought he's too unpredictable and selfish to be a team player.
"We, obviously, can't get a hold of the thunder man and Fury is getting very desperate." He answers, as if reading my mind.
"What, exactly, do you need me for?"
"Fury thinks your abilities would be useful for handling the big guy."
"The big guy?"
"You know, Bruce Banner, well, the Hulk." Oh shit.
"Does Fury realize how risky it could be for me to try and, uh, influence him." My ability is powerful but it only works on beings with measurable power. The Hulk's strength is unlimited. He could pulverize me into dust.
"Don't worry your not there just for that. Fury also thinks you could get Barton back."
"Clint? What happened to him?"
"He's been compromised." Holy shit!
"Does Natasha know?"
"She's aware."
"Does it have to do with the alien guy?" he nods his head.
"Well, when I get my hands on 'im he's in for a serious ass woopin'! No one brainwashes my kid."
"What? Barton isn't your kid?"
"He minus well be, I practically raised the boy."
"No, you raised Natasha, Barton grew up in a circus."
"I was partnered with him for two years and gave him plenty of motherly advice, so, he counts as my child."
"Not biologically."
"You're no fun."