"When a team outgrows individual performance and learns team confidence, excellence becomes a reality." - Joe Paterno
Confident- Demi Lovato
"So, where is everyone?" Rosie asks as she steps off of the quinjet and onto the Helicarrier. A glint of amusement hung in her eyes, a smile placed carefully on her lips. She looked around the small room and then to Fury, who just grinned at her.
"They're coming, Rogers. Don't worry about them. For now, I need to update you on all we know." He cleared his throat, and adjusted his coat. "The Tesaract was stolen by a man named Loki, brother of Thor."
"No way, you mean like The Thor, like New Mexico, Thor? That Thor? Dreamy blue eyes, and flowing blonde hair? The one Coulson never shuts up about?" Rosie chuckles and watches him as the look in his eyes doesn't even change.
"The very same." He says seriously, which makes Rosie's mood to the very same. "We don't know why, but just brought him in for questioning."
"What about Clint?" She asks, worried for the fellow Agent, her friend.
"Barton's still missing. My guess is that Loki still has him out there doing his bidding, whatever the hell, that may be. Now, excuse me for a moment, Roselyn." He said stepping into a small room where she stayed back to watch, from the other side of the glass wall. Fury went into the room to talk to the man she thought, must be Loki. His devilish emerald eyes, caught her blue. And she shivered. From the very sight of him, Rosie knew something was off.
"In case it's unclear." Fury started, at the control panel playing with various buttons. "If you so much as scratch that glass." The floor underneath the cage blew open and Loki looked down at the pit in surprise. Eyes curiously watching. "30,000 FEET IN A STEEL TRAP." Fury yelled over the noise as he once again shut the floor. "You get how that works? Ant, Boot." He gestured. Loki chuckled and looked around for a moment again.
"It's an impressive cage. Not built for me, I'm guessing." He gestured to the cage around him.
"It's built for something a lot stronger than you." Fury stated.
"Banner." Rosie said under her breath as she watched the entire thing play out.
"Oh, I've heard." Loki answered back, a grin forming on his lips. "The mindless beast. Makes play that he's still a man." He shook his head. " How desperate are you? You call on such lost creatures to defend you."
"How desperate am I?" Fury retorted back, his sass seeping in the words as he spoke. "This is war. You stole a source, you can't hope to control. There's no talk about peace. You kill because it's fun. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did." He said, stepping closer to the cage. A look of courage in his eye.
"Oooh." Loki started. The sound of his calm voice sending shivers down Rosie's back. "What does it feel like to have come so close to power? The Teseract, unlimited power? And for what? A warm light for all of mankind to share? And then. Be reminded of what real power is." Fury scoffed, and started to leave.
"Well let me know if real power wants a magazine or something." Fury stated as he left the room, and came back to Roselyn's side.
"What a whackjob." She stated as they started to walk to the main room, the conversation echoes back to them.
"You could say that again." Fury said under his breath.
"He really starts to grow on you." Banner said, fixing his glasses that had been falling down on his nose.
"Loki's gonna drag this out." Steve said seriously. "So... Thor, what's his play?" All eyes in the room stared to the Asgardian who faced away from all of them.
"He has an army, called the Chitauri. They are not of Asgard or any world that is known." He turned around to face the group. "He means to lead them against your people and win. He'll then return for the Tesaract."
"An army... from outer space." Steve stated so seriously, that when she and Fury reached the doorway, and stayed behind for a moment. She had to bite her lip, to keep from laughing.
"So he's building another portal?" Bruce tossed up. "That's what he needs Erik Selvig for."
"Selvig?" Thor questioned, a look of worry filling his eyes.
"He's an astrophysicist." Bruce answered back.
"He's a friend." Thor corrected.
"Loki has him under some kind of spell, along with one of ours." Natasha spoke up for the first time.
"I wanna know why Loki let us take him." Steve almost interrupted. "He's not leading an army from here."
"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki." Bruce said back. "That guy's brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell the crazy on him."
"I don't care how you speak." Thor spoke in his booming voice. "I know that he is out of reason but he is of Asgard, and he is my brother." He spoke towards the group, making eye contact with each one of them seriously.
"He killed 80 people in two days." Natasha said back, looking up a him.
"He's adopted." Thor admitted. Bruce then decided to speak back up.
"I think it's about the mechanics." He stated. "Iridium! What does he need the Iridium for?"
"It's a stabilizing agent." They all turned to see the new man, Tony Stark entering the room, talking to Phil. "So I'm saying take a weekend. I'll fly you to Bora Bora." He then smiled as Phil went a different direction, and Rosie rolled her eyes. "It means, the portal won't collapse on itself like it did at Shield." He smiled. "No hard feelings point break, you've got a meatswing. ALSO, it can open as wide, and stay open as long as Loki wants." He started giving orders to the crew, who just rolled their eyes. "That man is playing Galaga! Thought we wouldn't notice. But we did." Steve looked around the room, missing out on something, as if Galaga was the most important thing in the room and he had missed it.
"The rest of the raw materials Agent Barton could have gotten quite easily. The only thing missing is a power source. Something too, kick start the cube." He said, looking like he was now the smartest man in the room. And quite honestly, he was.
"When did you become an expert in Thermonuclear astrophysics?" Maria Hill asked.
"Last night. The extraction theory notes. Didn't anyone do their homework?" Tony asked with a deep sigh filling his voice.
"Does Loki need any certain kind of power source?" Steve tossed up, just curiously.
"He'd need to heat up the cube to a hundred and twenty million kelvin just to break the seal. " Bruce answered him. Dulling it down.
"Unless someone had figured out how to stabilize the quantum colored effect. " Tony backed up.
"If he could do that, he could use heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet." Bruce said surprisingly at the other man's answer, with a small smile.
"Finally! Someone who speaks English."
"Is that what just happened?" Steve asked.
"Good to meet you Doctor Banner. Your work on anti electron divisions is unparalleled. And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control... and turn into a enormous green rage monster." Tony said with an innocent smile.
"Thanks." Bruce said shyly.
"Doctor Banner is only here to track the cube." Fury said as they finally entered the room. Rosie, staying back a little bit. Nobody seeing her yet, as she watched the encounter. "I was hoping you might join him."
"I'd start with that stick of his." Steve said. "It may not look like much, but it sure works like a Hydra weapon."
"I don't know about that, and I'd like to know how he used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into flying monkeys." Fury spoke.
"Flying monkeys.." Thor started. "I do not understand."
"I do!" Steve piped up, so happy for himself. Tony couldn't roll his eyes back in his head far enough. "I understood that reference."
"I've called in for some help." Fury said, changing the subject. Every set of eyes in the room seemed to fall on him, confused by his words.
"Help?" Steve asked, curious as Tony snorted.
"You have us here, what did you call us? Earth's Mightiest Heroes and you think we need help?" He rolled his eyes, and shifted the weight in his legs. "What is she, your girlfriend?"
"She's one of you, Stark." Fury spat back his name. "She's been around for... a long while."
"A long while?" Tony asked curiously. "What do you mean by a long while?"
"She's been around since, well. Before Shield even got lifted off the ground."
"That would make her, like, seventy years old!"
"Sixty Eight, actually Anthony." She said, without even thinking. The words left Rosie's mouth before she could stop them. Everyone's eyes suddenly shifted to her as she walked up the steps and headed towards Fury.
Silence fell as Rosie looked around the table area, taking everyone in as they did the same to her.
Thor was the first person Rosie's eyes landed on. Then again, how could they not, he was so huge... Rosie was far from being a tiny girl, well built and all. But she looked like an ant standing next to Thor. He stood there with his arms crossed as he eyed her curiously.
Natasha was sitting at the table, leaned back in her chair, arms crossed with a smirk on her face. When Rosie's eyes met hers, Natasha gave Rosie a small nod, which the blonde returned with a little smile on her face. It'd been a while since Rosie had last talked to Natasha. And Rosie really liked her, she felt like she could be herself around her. And around Clint. After all, they knew all about Rosie and who her father was.
Shifting her eyes, Rosie found Bruce and Tony watching her closely. Bruce had a curious look on his face as he eyed the blonde in front of them, while Tony had a raised eyebrow and still had a slightly smug look on his face. Rosie had to look away because of the pain that started to form in her chest at how much he was reminding her of Howard.
Then again, the pain didn't stop as Rosie's eyes flicked to her father. When she saw him watching her with a confused, hurtful and upset look on his face however, Rosie had to look away. She didn't want to show weakness around the team when she hadn't even really met them yet, and she knew if she looked at her father any longer she wouldn't be able to take it.
She could only imagine the thoughts that were running though his head at the moment.
As Rosie stood there, next to Nick, she watched as everyone's eyes studied her with everyone besides Natasha and Steve looking curious. And she didn't blame them. Standing before them after all was a woman who had been around since S.H.I.E.L.D. started, looking only twenty-five.
Then again, to Bruce, Thor and Tony, the person standing in front of them was more a blonde, blue-eyed, twenty-five year old dressed in black pants with black heeled boots and a white, flowing top with a black leather jacket.
To the three boys, she was the perfect human being.
"Sixty-eight?" Tony broke the silence, a smirk forming on his lips. "Someone's specific. Are you this woman's granddaughter or something?"
The blonde raised her eyebrows at Tony before a small smile formed on her lips, and she couldn't help but see a pained look starting to form on Steve's face.
She didn't know why at first, but then she remembered something her Uncle Howard always used to tell her.
The look she just pulled caused her to look just like her mother.
"Not exactly, Anthony" Rosie couldn't help by give Tony a small smirk before Fury stepped in.
"Allow me to introduce you all to your newest teammate, Roselyn Rogers."
At the name Rogers everyone's head - including Steve's - snapped up. Steve, because Rosie told him she never went by Rogers but went by Carter instead. Everyone else, however, looked up in shock and confusion. Well, everyone besides Natasha, who seemed to be enjoying everything that was going on.
"Rogers?" Bruce questioned, breaking the silence.
"Any relation to Cap here, Roselyn?" Tony asked, causing Rosie to shift her gaze from Nick to him.
Silence fell around the room, causing Rosie to glance up at Fury again. She thought he'd be the first to answer but when she found him watching her, she realized he wanted her to answer this one.
Looking away from Fury, Rosie shifted her eyes to Steve, who was watching her with slightly pinched together eyebrows. She could tell by the look on his face that he was wondering how she was going to answer this.
Sighing, Rosie realized there was only one way out of this. Besides, it wouldn't be a good idea to start off joining a team by flat out lying to them.
"Yes, actually. There is," Rosie replied, her eyes still locked with Steve's before she looked up at everyone else. "He's my father."
The group around seemed to fall silent at these words.
Steve, however, was watching Rosie with weary eyes.
His mind was working overtime, trying to figure out the young woman standing next to Nick. But, he just couldn't understand her. She'd met him once, then didn't talk to him for three weeks, and now she's telling the whole team she was his daughter.
Steve couldn't figure out how her mind worked.
But he had his mind make up.
He was determined to take Rosie aside after, to talk to her, to let her know that he wasn't going anywhere and was willing to make this work if she wanted to. If anything, they could sit down, talk, and figure out how to make this work for the team. Because Steve knew if two team members where off, the whole team was going to be.
Rosie, however, was looking at anyone and anywhere besides Steve. Though she could feel his eyes on her, and now and then she'd catch sight of them out of the corner of her eye.
Rosie didn't need to be smart to know that, at some point, Steve was going to try and talk to her. The problem was that Rosie had no idea what to say to him.
There were a million and one things she wanted to say to her father. A million things she wanted to know about him. But, was she ready to finally sit down and talk to him, again?
She didn't know yet.
"Wait. One. Minute." Tony spoke up, breaking the long moment of silence as he turned to Steve. "Cap. I didn't you know you were married."
Steve turned around in his chair, giving him a confused look as Rosie raised an eyebrow.
"I'm not."
"Then you actually had sex before you were married?" Tony gasped dramatically. "You were allowed to do that back in the 40's?"
"Your Father Did." Rosie stated, sarcasm lacing her voice as Tony turned and gave her a smirk.
"And you look very young for a sixty-eight year old." Tony commented as he walked around the table up to Rosie. "What do you use? Face cream? Botox? Plastic surgery?"
"Really, Stark?" Steve spoke up as Rosie raised her eyebrows at Tony, who turned to Steve with a smug look on his face.
"What's the matter, Rogers? Don't like me this close to your daughter? Don't worry, she's too old for me anyways."
Rosie let out a dry laugh and, for a split second, she was glad she'd stopped seeing Tony when he was only eight. Because she had a funny feeling he'd have her driven up the wall.
"You're unbelievable."
"I'm Tony actually. Tony Stark. But yeah, I'm unbelievable too." Tony held to his hand, but Rosie didn't take it, rolling her eyes instead.
"I know who you are. I was there when you were born."
"Of course you were."
"Stark," Natasha spoke up for her seat at the table, her eyebrows pinched together. "Leave the girl alone."
Before Tony could shot back a witty comeback, however, Rosie spoke up as she gave Natasha a look. "I can take care of myself, Nat."
Natasha rolled her eyes, a smirk on her face. "Sure you can."
"Wait," Tony stepped forward, looking between the two women. "You two know each other?"
"Yeah. We trained together a few years ago." Rosie told him, and out of the corner of her eye, she say Steve look down at the table.
Something else he didn't know about his daughter, probably.
"She was pretty good too." Natasha commented.
"I do not understand." Thor spoke up before Rosie could say anything, looking between Rosie and Steve with curious eyes. "You both look of the same age. I thought you mortals aged fast then Asgardians?"
Rosie gave Thor a small smile as she took a deep breath through her nose. It was obvious really, that once she'd said she was the daughter of Captain America, the questions would start coming.
"Well, physically, we are the same age." Rosie's eyes flicked towards Steve for a split moment before looking back at Thor. "Seems like if you have super-solider DNA, you live longer than the normal human." Rosie informed them all before walking up the Thor, smile on her face. "Thor, right?"
Returning the smile, Thor nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, Lady Roselyn."
Rosie let out an airy laugh. She'd never been called Lady Roselyn before, and she's been called a lot of things. However, before she could correct him on her name, another voice spoke up.
"How much longer, exactly?"
Turning to her right, Rosie found Bruce watching her with curious eyes. She couldn't blame him, it's not every day you met someone like Rosie and Steve. Plus, she read Bruce's file. She knew about all the research he did, so for all Rosie knew, he could have already suspected that with the serum, you aged slower.
Nodding, Rosie walked closer to Bruce.
"About ten times longer, actually." She said, stopping a few feet away from Bruce as she stuck her hand out. "Dr. Banner, it's nice to meet you."
Bruce smiled, shaking her hand. "You as well, Roselyn."
"Call me Rosie," Rosie told them before looking around at everyone else. "The only one who calls me Roselyn is Fury, and that's only because he won't not call me that."
Fury shot Rosie a hard look. But before he could say anything, Tony cut him off.
"So, if you're Caps off-spring and have that serum,," He questioned. "Does that mean you are a super-solider like your old man?"
Rosie raised an eyebrow at Tony, trying to figure out if he was serious. Why the hell would Fury ask her to help if she was just a normal human?
"Yes, Stark." Rosie spat,. "I'm like… Steve."
"Hmmm," Tony hummed, raising an eyebrow. "Steve?"
"Tony." Bruce spoke up as he pinched the bridge of his nose as Rosie's eyebrows narrowed. "Drop it."
"What? I wasn't doing anything wrong."
As Tony gave Bruce an innocent look, Rosie suddenly felt someone's eyes on her. And when she looked to her right, she found Natasha watching her. When their eyes met, Natasha's eyes flicked down the table towards Steve.
It was only then that Rosie realized Steve was quiet through-out this whole conversation, and she could basically see his mind reeling.
Steve listened on as Rosie walked around to each team member, introducing herself to them. All he could think about was what he was going to say to her.
Rosie was obviously keeping her distance from him. The three weeks of not calling or trying to talk had him quickly get the hint. And the fact that she wouldn't even look at him right now was a bonus.
She's been - and was - keeping her distance. Steve guessed the tricky part was trying to get R to osiejust look at him. Next he could figure out what he was actually going to say.
He didn't want to scare her off like he had last time, so he was obviously going to have to be careful with what he was going to say to her. Unfortunately, Steve had no clue how to even start a conversation.
Feeling someone's eyes on him, Steve looked up from the table only to see Rosie watching him. However, the moment their eyes met, she looked away, causing Steve to let out a silent sigh.
Rosie, shifted her eyes back to Natasha, giving her a small shrug. Natasha, however, just gave her a look that clearly said they were going to have to talk later.
"If we are done here…" Fury started to speak to his team. However, he stopped and let out a sigh when he heard Tony let out a low whistle.
Unfortunately for Rosie - and Steve - Tony noticed their little, somewhat awkward, interaction. Rosie could feel Tony's gaze on her as her eyes flicked to Steve once more, only to see Steve watching her. Steve gave her a tiny smile before Rosie had to shift her eyes back once again, not being able to look at him.
However, the moment Tony let out a whistle, the whole team shifted to look at him while an annoyed yet hard look appeared on Fury's face.
"Ohhh," Tony crossed his arms over his chest, a smug look on his face. "Do I sense some tension in the air?"
While some of the team members gave Tony a confused look, Steve and Rosie knew what he was talking about.
Steve's eyes slicked towards Rosie for a split moment, before turning back to Tony, his eyebrows pinched together.
Rosie, however, let out a dry laugh as she crossed her arms across her chest.
"This is going to be fun, just like your father. "
"What does Man of Iron mean?" Thor spoke up, confusion on his face as he liked around at the other Avengers, some of which looked just as confused.
It wasn't hard to tell that there was some tension around Steve and Rosie. But then again, they only met each other about a month ago. They were still trying to get to know each other. At least, this is what the other Avengers picked up. But obliviously, Tony noticed something more.
"It would seem," Tony smirked. "That there are a few family problems between the Rogers'."
"Stark." Natasha snapped, sending Tony a hard look. "Back off."
"Tony," Bruce stepped in. "I don't think know is the time for-"
"I'm just stating the oblivious." Tony shrugged, cutting Bruce off before pointing at Steve and Rosie. "Though just so you two know, it's not very professional to bring your at-home problems to work."
"Enough." Fury spoke up just as Rosie stepped forward, eyes pinched together in a glare. "Stark, you and Banner head to the lab and try to locate the cube. The rest of you," Fury looked between Thor, Rosie, Natasha and Steve, trying to decide where to put them before sighing. "Just… Try to keep this plane in the air."
As Fury walked away, Maria followed behind him in a heartbeat, only casting the team before her a quick look. Phil, however, gave Rosie a small smile before sharing a quick look with the rest of the team, also following after Fury.
Silence once again fell around the team as everyone tried to figure out what to do now.
Rosie knew she had only just joined the team and was still getting to know people - hell, she'd only just met them - but she still felt like she was a guest. Someone who just happened upon this team and was for the time hanging out with them.
So, she decided to make it her personal mission to get to know the team a bit better.
Then again, how to hell was she going to do that when she couldn't even talk to her own father?
"Well," Tony spoke up, breaking the silence around them. "I have a few questions for mini Cap and Papa Cap."
"Seriously, Stark?" Steve gave Tony a pointed look.
Rosie sighed, pinched the bridge of her nose. "Didn't Nick give you a job to do?"
"Yes." Tony nodded. "But I never listen to Fury."
"Neither did your father." She spoke up, as Bruce lead him away. Leaving the small group in the room to talk to themselves. Well sit in silence as Steve and Rosie kept passing silent looks of pain, and sorrow.