Sorry it took a little longer for the update. I have a lot going on right now and this may be my last update until August...I know. Yell and scream all you want. I'm so sorry...but on the upside here's a new chapter!

AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE

Blaise found herself in the calm field once again, but this time she did not allow herself to be lulled into a false sense of calm. The girl enjoyed her few seconds of peace. She knew it was only a matter of time until he showed up. Sure enough after the next gust of wind she heard the rattle of his armor as he approached her.

"So when exactly I am going to discover this mystical birthright?" Blaise mockingly asked.

"Soon." Loki replied with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"I want to strangle you." The girl flatly told him. Loki simply laughed at the girl's frustration,

"I'm afraid there's already a line."

"Clever." Blaise drily told him.

"Before they discovered my affinity for mischief, I was almost declared god of intelligence." Loki haughtily told her.

"Bullshit." The girl skeptically replied. Loki laughed again,

"You are fairly amusing for a Midgardian."

"You're fairly annoying on any planet." Blaise muttered. Suddenly she was frozen in place and no matter how hard she strained, she could not move.

"Yes that may be, but I am the most powerful sorcerer in all of the nine realms. It would do you good to remember that, Ice Child."

When Blaise was up she tried to move, but she was still frozen in place for a few seconds after waking up. When she was finally able to move, she quickly got up out of bed. She did not want to risk falling back asleep and meeting Loki again. The girl opened up the window in her room. It was early and the sun was just peeking over the horizon. She decided to leave her room. She hoped to be the first one up, but when she walked out to the living room, Steve was already awake and reading the newspaper on a brown sofa in one of his many living rooms. Blaise sat on a brown chair opposite of the couch he was reclining on and slouched across it.

"Darn, I thought I was up first." Blaise sighed, pretending to be disappointed.

"You should have known better." Steve laughed and closed the newspaper he was reading, causing Blaise to catch a whiff of sweat and made her nose curled up in disgust.

"Why are you up so early anyway? You stink." The girl asked as she glanced out the window at the sun that was still barely above the horizon line.

"I went for a run. I like to finish before all the tourists are up." He replied with a sheepish laugh.

"Captain America doesn't like endless photo-ops?" Blaise mockingly gasped.

"I'm polite, not a push over." He replied.

"An argument could be made either way." Blaise teased.

"You're a punk." He replied as he threw the sweat towel that had been lying next to him on the floor at her. Blaise quickly rolled off the chair onto the floor and narrowly avoided the sopping towel.

"You missed." She gloated from her position on the floor. Steve rolled his eyes and started to flip through a pile of mail on the side table.

"That's strange." Steve mumbled.

"Everyone misses every once in a while Cap, not even a super serum can make you perfect." The girl joked, but Steve just shook his head,

"No, this." He replied as he tossed as envelope across the floor to her. Blaise looked up at him in confusion before hesitantly pulling the large letter towards herself. It was a strange color of tan with elegant cursive on the front that said, 'For Blaise, do not open until birthday' and a blue wax seal on the back.

"Who did you tell about staying here?" Steve asked her. Concern was clearly written on his face.

"Just the Council and Fury." She tried to reassure him.

"You don't know who it's from?" He asked her.

"No one writes letters anymore Steven." Blaise scoffed in an attempt to dismiss the issue, but deep down she was concerned. How did this person find her? She had only spent on night at the soldier's house and it took a few days for letters to travel through the mail.

"Are you going to open it?" He anxiously asked.

"No, it says don't open until my birthday." Blaise lied, knowing full well that the minute she was alone she would open the letter.

"When's that?" Steve pressed.

"Steve, you don't know my birthday? I'm wounded." The girl joked as she dramatically grasped her chest.

"Blaise stop messing around." He snapped. Blaise frowned and let her arms fall to her sides,

"It's in three days."

"Do you have any clue who could have written you the letter?" Steve asked again. A certain mischievous god's name flashed across her mind, but Blaise shook her head no.

"You're not going anywhere alone until your birthday is over." He told her.

"Don't be ridiculous. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." The girl scowled.

"This is serious." He condescendingly replied.

"I'm serious. You may be older, but I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Blaise repeated with a deadly glare and deepened scowl.

"I have to Director Fury about this." Steve sighed.

"Don't you dare." Blaise growled.

"He needs to know." He protested.

"Screw you." Blaise sneered before storming back to the guest bedroom with the letter crumpled in her hand and slamming the door behind her. She angrily threw the letter on the floor towards her back pack and started to pace around the room.

The girl was not share how long she had been pacing before she heard Steve's footsteps coming down the hall and a gentle knock on the unlocked door.

"Blaise." Steve hesitantly called from outside the room.

"Go away." She yelled back as she continued to pace.

"Look can we talk this through?" He sighed.

"Are you going to stop acting like an ass?" Blaise replied.

"I wasn't-," Steve sighed, "Director Fury called. The Council has voted."

"Great and I suppose you gave them another reason not to trust me so now they want a re-vote." Blaise sarcastically replied.

"I didn't tell Director Fury, but I'm not going to leave you by yourself until your birthday is over." He told her.

"I don't need your help. I was perfectly fine on my own for months." The girl reminded him. Steve cautiously opened the door and walked in the room.

"Just because you can take care of yourself doesn't mean that we don't worry about you." He told her.

"I never asked you to worry about me." Blaise replied, but her argument was beginning to weaken and her resolve to fight him was starting to crumble.

"You never had to..." Steve told her, "but I'm still going to escort you to S.H.I.E.L.D. I don't like this whole letter business. It doesn't feel right."

"I'll let you tag along IF you make me breakfast." The girl bargained.

"Eggs and bacon alright?" He asked with a small smile.

"Fantastic." Blaise grinned, relieved that the argument seemed to be over.

"The meeting is at nine, but the Director said to be there early." Steve told her as he walked out of the room.

"Yay." Blaise sarcastically replied as she walked over to her back pack and started to rifle through it. She wanted to look intimidating today so that if they voted yes, they would be reassured that they made the right choice and if they voted no, they would instantly regret it.

Finally she found her famous light blue sweatshirt and leggings. She quickly changed into them and braided her hair into her trademark, a single French braid down her back. For a brief moment, she considered opening the window and quickly leaving the apartment. Steve would never have to know. By the time he would notice her absence, she would already be at the Triskelion, but then she caught a whiff of cooking bacon. All thoughts of leaving were immediately dispelled from her mind and she stumbled out into the kitchen in search of the glorious smell. She quickly located the plate of cooked bacon and started to eat. A minute later Steve slide some scrambled eggs onto a plate in front of her. Blaise eagerly started to dig into those as well. He left the room with a large plate and the girl was left to finish her eggs alone. After the first few bites, she slowed down and started to eat at a normal pace. Just as she was finishing her last bite, Steve entered the room carrying an empty plate in one hand and a leather jacket in the other. His button down shirt was neatly tucked into his kakis.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked. Blaise sighed and slowly walked over to the place to place her dishes inside,

"As ready as I'll ever be I suppose." She replied with a small smile.

"They're going to vote yes." He reassuringly told her.

"How do you know?" Blaise scoffed.

"If they vote no, Project AVIS will never be completed." Steve replied with absolute certainty.

"Well they hate me so I'm sure they'll find a way to complete it without using me if it kills them." The girl huffed with a roll of her eyes. Steve just shook his head as he grabbed his keys off the counter and walked out the door. Blaise quietly followed, mentally preparing for the best and worst case scenarios. As soon as they exited the room, Steve turned around and locked the door. Blaise headed down the stairs and waited for Steve in the small lobby. Suddenly the door to the complex opened and the blonde who had turned Blaise away the day before walked in the building. The blonde's blue eyes narrowed when she saw Blaise,

"How did you get in here?" She hissed.

"I climbed in a window." Blaise nonchalantly shrugged.

"This is private property. You have ten seconds to clear the premises before I call the police!" The blonde threatened.

"How can I exit the premises if you're blocking the doorway?" Blaise asked as she calmly ran her hand through her hair. The blonde glared at her,

"You little—" But she was interrupted by Steve jogging down the steps,

"Sorry that took so long. You ready Blaise?"

"I was just waiting on you." Blaise replied as she smugly smiled at the blonde.

"Oh hello, Kate." Steve waved as he opened the door for Blaise.

"Goodbye, Kate." Blaise smugly waved as she walked out the door. Steve waved goodbye to Kate and followed Blaise out of the building. Steve led the way to his motorcycle that was parked beside the curb and grabbed a helmet off the handle bats. He tossed the helmet to Blaise and patted the seat behind him. The girl hesitated,

"How about we race? You drive, I'll fly?" She hopefully asked.

"I don't think that's a good idea Blaise." He apologetically grinned.

"Fine." Blaise huffed, "Hold the helmet while I adjust my sweatshirt." She told him as she tossed the helmet at him. He easily caught it and the girl started running towards him,

"Three…two…one…GO!" She yelled as she spread her wings and took off.

"You punk!" Steve yelled at her as he revved his engine.

"Catch me if you can!" She sang as she flew above him just high enough to stay out of reach so that there was no way he could pull her back down onto the bike, but low enough to make him think it was a possibility. After a few minutes, she realized she had no clue where she was going. She climbed higher in the sky and spotted the Triskelion in the distance. The girl immediately altered her course so that she was flying in a beeline towards the large building. Every so often she glanced down to see if she could catch a glimpse of the Captain, but she did not see him. She continued racing towards the Triskelion certain that she was going to win until she landed at the base of the building and saw Steve waiting outside for her.

"How the hell did you beat me?" Blaise asked as she tried to catch her breath.

"They don't call me a super soldier for nothing." He shrugged.

"Yeah, but I can fly faster than a bike." Blaise scoffed as she ran her hand through her hair.

"Apparently, you can't." Steve grinned.

"Shut up." Blaise scowled, "Where are we supposed to go?" Steve laughed and placed his helmet on the handles of his motorcycle.

"Meet me in the lobby in five minutes. I have to park my bike." He replied as he pointed to a set of glass doors.

"Kay." Blaise replied as she pulled up her hood and headed to the glass doors. She kept her head down as she walked into. She knew almost everyone around her was in some form of business suit and that she appeared woefully underdressed. That would earn her a lot of strange looks. The girl knew she looked sketchy and out of place so she was astonished by the fact that no one had asked her to leave or at the very least what she was doing there. After a few minutes of examining her reflection in the shiny white tiles and ignoring the agents around her, a hand landed on her shoulder causing Blaise to jump.

"Ready?" Steve asked.

"I was born ready." The girl arrogantly replied as she looked up at him from under her hood. Steve chuckled,

"Let's go tiger." He mockingly told her as he led the glaring girl towards the elevator.

"Security Council." Steve ordered the elevator as they stepped inside.

"Confirmed." A female voice replied. The pair rode up to Councilman Pierce's floor in silence. Blaise was contemplating the various outcomes of the situation and Steve was unsure of what to do. A few times he opened his mouth to say something, but ended up deciding against it. Blaise did not want to talk. She kept her hood up and her eyes closed as she prepared herself for the meeting ahead. Finally the elevator doors opened with a ding and the girl stepped out of the elevator. Steve moved to exit with her, but she stopped him by placing a hand on his chest and pressing the button that closed the doors,

"I'll see you on the other side, Cap." She smirked as the doors closed. Steve opened his mouth to protest, but before he could get a word out the doors were already closed. As soon as he was gone, Blaise examined her reflection in the elevator doors and slipped into an emotionless mask. She would not allow the council members to see the affect they had on her whether they voted yes or no. The girl turned and walked down the hall that she had visited the day before. Today, she spent no time in the waiting room and was escorted directly into the meeting room where the council was waiting for her.

"This was a bad idea. The little thug even came in costume today." The older man muttered as soon as she entered the room.

"Enough Councilman Rockwell." Alexander Pierce snapped. Blaise slowly lowered her hood and looked around the room.

"I take it that you voted to allow me to work on the project?" She calmly asked.

"By a vote of three to two." Councilman Pierce confirmed.

"Good. When do I start?" She smirked.

"Now. We have some files for you. You will report to Director Fury's office to get the details taken care of then Agent Romanoff will escort you to Project AVIS." He told her as he shoved a small stack of files into her hands,

"Thanks." Blaise replied as she thumbed through the files. It appeared that Project AVIS was actually a person. She stepped into the elevator,

"Director Fury." She announced.

"Confirmed." The voice replied. As she rode down to Director Fury's office her mind was spinning. She was almost in disbelief that they had actually approved her. When she arrived in his office, the Director was waiting for her,

"Congratulations." He greeted her.

"Thanks." The girl replied. He handed her a manila envelope with her name written on the front,

"Keycard, apartment key, and instructions on how to get to the apartment. Don't lose it." He ordered her before waving the girl out of the room. Blaise grabbed the folder and set it on top of the stack of files before exiting the office where Natasha Romanoff was waiting for her. Blaise greeted her with a head nod and the pair walked towards the elevator.

"Hey Romanoff, long time no see." She grinned. The redhead rolled her eyes and shoved a file into the girl's hands,

"Good luck with this one. They refuse to speak." Natasha told the younger girl.

"Someone sounds a little sore." Blaise teased.

"I'm the most recent in a long list of failures." She replied as the pair stepped into the elevator.

"Sublevel X." Agent Romanoff ordered.

"Confirmed." The female voice replied.

"Haven't seen you around in a while." Natasha said as the elevator started to move.

"Miss me?" Blaise smugly replied.

"Of course not." The redhead scoffed.

"You can't lie to me Natasha." The younger girl teased.

"That's what you think." Natasha grinned.

"I don't think, I know." Blaise smirked. Both women looked up in surprise when the elevator dinged.

"Good luck Williams." Romanoff waved at her. Blaise mockingly saluted to the agent as she stepped out of the elevator into the long metal hallway lined with containment units. As the doors shut behind her, Blaise started walking down the hall only to be blown off her feet and slammed into the wall. The files in her hand were scattered across the room. The girl scowled and tried to stand to her feet only to be knocked down again by another gust of wind. This time she stayed down and cautiously looked around at the cells. She did not plan on getting slammed into the wall a third time. That was when Blaise noticed a figure casually standing in the cell across from her. She took a deep breath as she slowly tried to get to her feet. This time the wind was relentless and it kept her pinned against the opposing wall.

"Knock it off asshole!" Blaise yelled over the rushing wind. Suddenly she dropped to the ground. Blaise sat against the wall and examined the person responsible for the wind. He appeared to be about her age with messy black hair and angry grey eyes. She figured she would try to be his friend…at least at first,

"What's your name?" She kindly asked, but he did not reply. He continued to angrily glare at her.

"Well, that was fun. Good talk." She sarcastically told him before starting to gather the files that had been scattered around the room. Every so often a gust of wind would blow the files just out of her reach and she would chase after them. Finally she managed to grab the last paper and by that time she was so fed up, she just wanted to leave.

"It's been fun, but I can't handle your shit right now." Blaise told the boy before she walked over to the elevator and stepped inside.

"Lobby." She told the elevator.

"Confirmed." The female voice replied. Blaise pulled out the instructions on how to get to her apartment during the ride. The apartment was fairly close to the base, but it was far enough away that she could pretend she was separate from S.H.I.E.L.D. She finally arrived at the ground floor and pulled out her phone. She texted Steve to tell him she was stopping by to grab her stuff as she walked out the front doors of the Triskelion. As soon as she was clear of the building she took off into the air. She reached Steve's apartment in record time and quickly gathered her things. She left him a note on the fridge with her new address and took off once again. The building that her apartment was in was nothing special. It was white with four apartments inside. She was luckily in one of the apartments on the second and more importantly, top floor. The inside was fairly modern and fully furnished, but it was nothing fancy. There was one bedroom, one bathroom, one living room, and a small kitchen. It was obvious that he apartment cost nowhere near as much as Steve's did, but she was strangely okay with that. She was just happy to have an apartment. She quickly located the bedroom and dumped her stuff on the ground before collapsing on the premade bed but as she was drifting off to sleep, she suddenly remembered the letter. Her eyes snapped open; she jumped out of bed, and raced over to her back pack. She dug around until she found the fancy letter that Steve had given her this morning. The girl took a deep breath and opened the letter, but to her dismay, when she pulled out the paper inside it was blank. Blaise flipped over the paper multiple times to double and triple check that she had not missed the message. When that failed she tried holding it up to the light and brushing the page with lemon juice, but everything she tried was unsuccessful. Finally, Blaise let out a sigh of frustration and tossed the letter on the floor beside her bag before climbing back into bed and drifting off to sleep.

You know the drill review, follow, favorite, review...oops did I already say that? Once again so sorry for the wait and I am even more sorry that I more than likely will not update again until August. If you hate me I understand. Leave a strongly worded review or a nice one and tell me how you feel.