Chapter Three

Pint sized fury is just more concentrated and Darcy didn't even twitch as Jane wrapped herself possessively around her assistant and hissed towards the webcam "mine!".

Yeah, Jane gets a little like that when people try to steal her away.

Tony freaking Stark pouted (Seriously. Pouted. How is this her life?). "She's an asset! Asset, women! We didn't even know he was alive until Miss Stacked here found him! That's some serious skill!". Jane just hissed, Coulson sighed and Darcy was pretty sure at least one half of the Terror Twins was amused.

Introductions had been made, but Darcy still called Natasha and Clint twins in her head. She might have let it slip to the soul-bonded pair, but Clint preened and Natasha might have liked it a little too much. Oh well. Making the spyassassin's smile was already on her priorities list for the near future. It might have been a few short hours since Phil (she thought Agent was Coulson's first name until today) woke, but the pair just seemed to click with her just like Jane first did. It helped they hovered over Phil obsessively so, and as soon as Darcy brought Jane in they made sure the scientist didn't wander off like she usually did unless Darcy's there to pull her back.

Between the twins and Phil, Darcy and Jane were left gaping at them as they told them about everything they've missed being locked away in the middle of nowhere. Loki, Thor returning (Jane's face nearly broke Darcy's heart) and the Battle of New York. When she'd heard about Clint being mind controlled (Darcy planned on tasering Loki multiple times until he's a twitching, drooling mess on the floor), she'd looked at him closely and finally saw how sallow he looked. Darcy all but bullied him into sitting and drinking some of her specially made tea. He gave her a short grin, and if Natasha gratefully brushed her elbow Darcy will never tell.

Now everyone sat around Phil's bed, talking to Tony Stark of all people on Skype. As Jane and Tony argued, Darcy just grinned brightly and continued playing with Jane's hair "while I appreciate the offer rust bucket, where Jane goes so does my country".

"RUST BUCKET?!"

"Hey!" Jane tossed a pencil at the computer screen. "Quit trying to steal my assistant!". Tony frowned at her while everyone else watched in amusement, (even Phil, though he was valiantly trying to hide it with exasperation). "You threw a pencil at me" Iron man gasped, staring at her like a lunatic. Darcy's pretty sure they both are, but Jane's out of her head and not wasting away pining so she's too goddamn pleased to care.

"Yes I did," she huffed at him. "I'll throw my coffee at you too if you don't cut it out.". He stared at her for a moment before he started laughing. "I like you! Both of you!" His voice sounded surprised. "Tell you what," he mused aloud. "We'll hire you too. I'm sure I can use an astrophysicist somewhere."

Jane sniffed hauntingly. In Jane-isms that's pretty much an 'I'll pretend I'm thinking about it but really I've already said yes' noise.

"Pepper's already redirected her jet to your location. In an hour she'll be there, and bringing all of you back". Jane spluttered, but Tony just grinned at her "I dare you to try and argue with my Miss Potts". When Coulson and Natasha nodded sagely at Darcy's questioning look she burst out laughing.

"Miss Lewis?"

The brunette looked up from where she was packing all of Jane's temperamental machines. Pepper Pott's had arrived, a pack of lawyers tearing apart any and all Shield agents that questioned her presence at this previously very secret base from her Starkphone's loudspeaker, and an AI who could do British disapproval like no other. Honestly Darcy was a little in love. She didn't even mind he'd piggy backed from her offline webcam and found Phil when he was in a coma and she was his only protector.

Between Jarvis and Pepper they were frighteningly well-organized. Darcy had plans to stay on their good side so when they took over the world she'd be safe. That will be the most terrifyingly efficient apocalypse ever.

"Yes, oh mighty assassin goddess?" the red head almost smirked, before a Shield flunky came into the line of sight and promptly backed away from her. He tripped in his haste. It would have been hilarious if he wasn't holding one of Jane's machines.

Darcy could have kissed Clint when he appeared from nowhere and caught it, but he just smirked menacing down at the baby agent. The twins were her heroes.

"Is Jane plotting scientific domination over there?" all the Shield agent's around them stared wide-eyed as Darcy's loud peals of laughter echoed in the now silence room. Like Darcy was doing something completely cracked. The twins shared a look over her head while she gathered herself, a large smile plastered across her face "You two, quit that sibling mind-share thing."

They turned back to look at her in perfect sync, and she wasn't sure what changed exactly, but they both were looking at her with softer, more sincere eyes. "Jane," Darcy waved vaguely over to her tiny astrophysicist "is having a meltdown about moving all her research so quickly. Not that we don't get the need to or anything. But the machines are touchy at best and she's really only comfortable with us handling them".

Natasha nodded thoughtfully; eyes flickering around the room and the way Jane was trying to be everywhere at once. Clint gently handed Darcy the machine he'd heroically saved "we have to get back to Coulson. But we'll leave orders only you two will touch the machines and the lackeys will do the heavy lifting". Darcy let out a grateful sigh and grinned at them cheekily, rushing off to tell Jane the news before she really did hurt herself hovering over her babies like the world's most demented helicopter mum.

The soul-bonded pair left their orders, and prowled around looking menacing for a little before leaving. The high up official's had tried cornering Darcy and Jane when they finally realised what the pair had been up to, but Natasha had appeared with a feral look in her eyes and they'd hastily retreated. Coulson had told them to keep an eye on the girls, but they would have done it anyway. They owed Darcy. Without her, who knows when they'd have heard rumours of Coulson survival? Because Fury clearly had no intention of telling them. It was almost enough to cut the last few threads of their loyalty to Shield. Now, whether it be with the Avengers or elsewhere, they'd follow their handler (exclusively) wherever he chose to be.

Coulson was Widow's conscience; her handler being that little voice in her ear she trusts to know what is right or wrong. His supposed death had left them reeling, because without him, how would they keep themselves from going dark side (as Clint would say)? Natasha was under no illusions. Coulson was the only handler that would work with them, and they him. And without him, they'd have been made expendable years ago. Coulson was so honourable, that it didn't even surprise her that he'd somehow managed to gain someone's binding loyalty while supposably dead.

Clint's so in sync with her, he's almost like an extra limb and she feels his loss when he isn't at her side more keenly then she cared to admit out loud.

And Darcy's now a soft spot. Their weakness. Which will be protected against all things until her debt has been repaid (and if she's being honest, probably even after that).

The Black Widow could tell her partner was thinking about something deeply as they stalked the corridors, but she waited quietly for him to speak first.

"What made her go up into the vents?"

Widow paused, revaluating, flicking through memories. While Clint had been known to crawl up into the duct work in whichever base they stationed at, Natasha had enough knowledge of civilian behaviour to come to the conclusion a normal civilian wouldn't be up in the vents to begin with.

Natasha considered, but swiftly concluded that this wasn't a planned event. Even if Darcy had somehow managed to hide being a spy or enemy (unlikely with Natasha's skills), there were more direct routes to lead them astray. Or she could have killed Coulson in his bed and they would never have been the wiser. The soul-bonded pair eyed each up briefly, making a mental note to track down the reason for Darcy's odd behaviour.