Disclaimer: Sadly, I own nothing associated with Marvel, Captain America, the Avengers, etc. Only original characters and ideas are mine.

AN: This is mostly the party scene from the movie. Enjoy, and please don't forget to review! Thanks!

Chapter 4: Party at the Tower:

Years ago, partying with Tony Stark had probably been a serious trip. Before I'd come to New York, even I had heard about the aftermath of his parties, usually through tabloids, evening entertainment shows, and gossip around the office. People used to get wasted on alcohol and dance all night, and by dawn the next day, people were still staggering out of Tony's mansion.

Now that he was with Pepper, Tony had toned down his parties quite a bit. Rather than rowdy party animals looking for a night of endless drinks, these events now had a sense of class. There was also a guest list, and guards at the door, letting in only a select few.

Tonight, everyone was in dressy-casual clothes, the music was turned up, and drinks were flowing. Everyone was mingling and chatting, and having a pretty good time when I got there. Steve had headed up early, since Sam was going to be there and the two hadn't had much time to hang out together. When I arrived, the two were playing pool with a group of guys and girls, some of whom were cheering them on.

As I strolled up to the table, Steve put an arm around me and smiled. "I like it when you dress up," he murmured as he leaned in for a kiss.

Choosing a color to match Steve's blue shirt and black pants, I'd decided to wear a simple, midnight-blue dress that went down to my ankles. The waist was high, but the fall of the dress itself was elegant and flowed beautifully. I had silver sandals on, with silver bracelets around my wrists, set off by the three-quarter length sleeves of the dress. JT was safely tucked into a pocket, where I could reach him if necessary.

"Looks like I win again, Cap," Sam said, smirking as a few of the guys handed him some cash.

Steve pulled back from our kiss with a smile. "That's alright. I've got a pretty good prize right here."

The girls all gave small sighs of envy, but when the other men started paying attention to them, they became much happier.

With the game over, Sam decided to take a turn around the room, and invited us upstairs to a walkway that was fairly empty. As we headed up, Steve told Sam about what had happened in Sokovia, and what they had managed to accomplish.

"Sounds like quite a fight," Sam said, "I'm sorry I missed it." The disappointment in his voice was beyond obvious.

Steve sighed. "If I'd known there'd be that kind of firefight, I'd have called you."

Sam smiled and shook his head. "I'm not actually sorry; I'm just trying to sound tough."

"Hey, you're tough!" I exclaimed, looking around Steve so that I could have a clear view of my friend. "I know you're tough."

He laughed a little. "Yeah, I'm perfectly happy taking Adena around town, fighting off those rabid, curious fans of yours. But it'd still be nice to see some real action, once in a while."

Sam paused a second. "Although, Avenging is your world; and your world is crazy."

I felt Steve squeeze my waist. "As crazy as things get for me, knowing Adena is safe is what keeps me together," Steve said, his blue eyes softening as he looked at me. "I can't thank you enough for protecting the most important person in my life."

Sam chuckled as I gave Steve a kiss on the cheek. "Alright, I get it. How about I leave you two alone to get reacquainted?"

At that point, a small group of girls was eyeing Sam rather closely, so he had the perfect excuse to leave me with Steve. For a while, we walked around the party, chatting with some of the other Avengers and some of the guests that had been invited.

During our rounds, I was happy to see that Barton was okay, thanks to Helen Cho, who had used some of the tech she'd brought with her to patch him up. He moved a little stiffly, but considering he'd just been shot a few days ago, I was amazed he wasn't still bedridden.

Thor found us as Steve was introducing me to a group of WWII veterans, and there was a wicked gleam in the Asgardian's eyes that made me a little suspicious. "Stark has informed me of the Captain's unique tolerance to strong drink," he said, pulling out a small flask from his pocket.

The vets, who seemed to be grumpy old men, were still young at heart and had great senses of humor. When they heard the slight challenge in Thor's voice, all of them gathered around.

"What've you got there?" one of them asked, using a cane to hobble over.

I listened to Thor talk about special wooden barrels and aging the liquor for over a thousand years, and knew what he was up to: he wanted to see how drunk he could get Steve.

Now, if I'd been married to any other man, I'd have put a stop to this whole thing, fast. But Steve was unable to get intoxicated (at least on human alcohol), so I felt he would hold up pretty well under Asgardian liquor. Even if he did get tipsy (or flat-out drunk), it would at least make for a great video, though I would have to fight the urge to put it online.

Thor handed Steve a glass with a shot of the stuff, and as the old men argued and urged him to serve them one, I watched my husband closely examine the contents of his glass. He sniffed it carefully, looking a bit between puzzled and fascinated. He then offered it to me to examine.

As I accepted the glass, Thor watched me carefully, a touch of amusement on his face. I carefully waved the glass under my nose, and took a tiny sniff, since I'd had some bad experiences with sniffing strong alcohol before, and almost ended up flat on the floor because of it.

To my surprise, the liquid actually smelled fairly nice –smooth, a little fruity, and a bit oaky, the scent was somewhere between a good bourbon, and a fine, aged wine. I was tempted to try it, but since I was a bit of a lightweight when it came to drinking, I didn't want to risk it. I simply handed the glass back to Steve and watched as he, and the others, started to down them.

About ten minutes later, Steve and I were walking away from a severely drunk group of war vets. Some were so plastered that I had to call a few Stark employees to carry them off downstairs, where a taxi would be waiting for them. A few had passed out, and one seemed to be lost in some sort of drunken haze, muttering the word "excelsior" repeatedly as he was led to his cab. It was pretty funny, but I felt terrible for them; their hangovers tomorrow were going to be epic.

Steve, however, had once again shown the miracle of his super-soldier serum, and was sober as a rock. "You know, it was pretty good," he commented, looking at the empty glass in his hand. "You should have tried some."

Looking over at the poor guys getting carried out, I shook my head. "No, thanks; I don't think my system could take it, Legolas."

He gave me an odd look. "The blonde guy from that Lord of the Rings movie you had me watch?"

I laughed. "Remember the drinking scene? You're both so alike: you keep drinking, and at the end of the whole thing, you're still standing."

Steve finally got the reference and chuckled. "Okay, I can see that. I feel bad for the boys, though."

I shrugged. "Well, Thor did warn them. I'm just glad that alien alcohol doesn't affect you, since if you did get drunk, I would be the one having to deal with your hangover."

He offered me the empty glass, which still had a tiny amount of the liquor at the bottom. It was barely enough for a sip, and the liquid, which was clear with a slight tint of amber, was very tempting. Dare I try something from another planet?

'Well, when is this chance ever going to come up again?'

I took the glass and looked up at my husband. "Promise you'll catch me if I pass out?"

He didn't even hesitate to pull me aside and put a firm arm around my waist. Secure in the knowledge that Steve would never let me go, even by accident, I took a deep breath and downed the sip in one go.

At first, it was pretty good. The liquor went down smoothly, and sort of tasted like a shot of spiced rum, but without the harsh burn that went with it. There was a bit of a bite, but not as bad as I thought it would be.

When the shot hit my stomach, though, it was a different story. I felt a little woozy, and actually swayed a little on my feet. I doubt that I would have fallen, but Steve was there to catch me anyway. He gave me a worried look, but I smiled at him, feeling a little lightheaded.

"Whew," I breathed, fanning myself with my free hand as I set the glass on a nearby bar table. "Now I can see why those guys had to be helped out of here."

Steve was clearly worried about how I was handling the liquor, but I assured him I was fine. "Just a little lightheaded," I said. "I might need a place to sit down, though."

With the exception of Bruce and Natasha, the bar was totally empty, as most people were mingling throughout the party. With a gentle guiding hand, Steve escorted me to a seat at the very end and helped me onto one of the tall stool seats.

Unfortunately, our arrival interrupted a rather flirtatious conversation between Bruce and Natasha, who was playing the role of occasional bartender. When we arrived at the bar, I saw Natasha give Bruce one last glance before snagging a drink and heading off, leaving a rather nervous and flustered scientist behind.

"Aw, don't you two look cute," I cooed, smiling widely.

Bruce tried to stutter a reply, but couldn't get much out. Feeling bad for him, I got up and put my arms around him in a hug. He stiffened a little, then relaxed, his arms giving me a nice, tight squeeze as I gently patted him on the back. A minute later, I pulled away, smiling at the pink tinge in his cheeks.

"You know, she's just flirting with me," Bruce muttered, eyes looking down as he tried to hide his embarrassment. "Empty flirtation…stuff like that."

Steve chuckled a little. "Trust me; Adena and I have both seen her flirt with plenty of guys," he said, reaching over to grab a beer from behind the bar. "That wasn't empty flirting."

I gently patted Bruce on the shoulder. "You should go for it," I encouraged him. "You both deserve to be happy."

Bruce muttered something under his breath as he headed off to join Tony in a corner, where he was talking with Helen Cho. Once Steve and I were alone, Natasha appeared from behind a pillar, an amused smile on her face.

"Trying to play matchmaker with me and Banner?" she said, leaning against the bar.

I gave her an innocent look. "Would I do that to you?"

She laughed and reached out to hug me around the waist. "You would. Just because you and Steve are a happy married couple doesn't mean you should hook us single Avengers up with one another."

Natasha then pressed a kiss to my cheek before heading the opposite direction of Bruce; she went up to join Barton in the walkways above the huge party/lounge area.

A large hand settled on my back. "And you really should sit down," Steve firmly told me. "Or at least let me get you some water."

I reluctantly agreed. After downing a couple glasses of water, Steve and I headed out onto the large balcony that wrapped around the front half of the building, and which had a spectacular view of the city. The air was pleasantly cool, and out here, all we could hear were the bustle of the traffic far below us and the whir of the occasional helicopter flying by.

Slipping an arm around my waist, Steve pulled me close. "You know, now that we've found Loki's scepter, I might take a few weeks off," he whispered into my ear. "What do you think about us taking a vacation? Someplace warm, quiet, with a beach…"

I sighed. "Oh, yes, I like that idea," I murmured in reply, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Maybe Tony will lend us a beach house?"

For the rest of the party, we quietly discussed our future vacation, and enjoyed the quiet of the night.

A couple hours later, after the party had ended, the Avengers, including Adena, Maria Hill and Helen Cho, gathered in a foyer, with plenty of Chinese food, drinks, and jokes scattered around.

Tucked snuggly against Steve's side was his wife, who was poking fun at Lt. Rhodes, who was telling one of his 'battle stories' as War Machine. The others, meanwhile, were having an argument about Thor's hammer, and whether it was really magical or not.

"It's a trick," Barton was saying, twirling a pair of drumsticks as he talked. "Whosoever be he worthy shall have the power. Whatever, it's a trick!"

Thor chuckled. "Please, be my guest," he offered, smiling as he gestured towards the hammer, which stood on a wooden table, handle up.

All the men instantly perked up, including Steve. The idea of handling Thor's fantastic weapon was just too tempting to turn down!

He felt Adena stir beside him, and looked over just in time to see her rolling her eyes at Natasha, who snickered and sipped a beer. He knew what she was thinking: the men were trying to show off again, and she was going to be the one to try and sooth their egos if/when they failed at what they were trying to do.

Barton headed up first, but not before Tony jibed, "Don't worry, Barton. You've had a tough week, so we won't hold it against you if you can't get it up."

Barton just rolled his eyes and put one hand on the hammer. Everyone watched in amusement as he struggled to pick it up, and failed. He laughed, and pulled back. "I don't know how you do it!" he exclaimed, shaking his head.

Adena gently nudged him in the side. "Are you going to try?" she whispered as Tony got to his feet, an arrogant swagger in his step as he moved towards the hammer.

Steve wasn't one to turn down a challenge, and he was rather excited to at least see if he had what it took. The problem was he wasn't sure Adena would approve of such a display of 'manly pride.' But he had to be honest with her. "Yes," he admitted, feeling awkward all of a sudden.

To his surprise, she nodded. "Okay, but don't strain or break something while you do," she said, half teasing. "I'll be right here, cheering for you."

Knowing that made him feel much better; so much so that he leaned in and kissed her swiftly. "Thanks," he whispered.

"Be right back," Stark said, before strolling downstairs.

Steve looked at the rest of the group. "What? Where is he going?"

The others shrugged, though Adena sighed. "I have a guess, but I'll wait to see if I'm right."

A few minutes later, Stark returned with one arm of his Iron Man armor and one from War Machine. "Me first, then you, Rhodey," he said, handing the War Machine gauntlet to its handler.

Smirking, Steve sat back to watch and wait his turn.

Watching all these guys try and prove themselves "worthy" of Thor's hammer was something I was going to remember for the rest of my life.

After Tony and Rhodey failed in picking up the hammer, and Bruce's hilarious pretend efforts to lift it, I sat and waited as Steve took his turn. Rolling up his sleeves, my husband calmly walked over to the other end of the table, and looked at me for support. I smiled and nodded, but said nothing as the others cheered him on.

While the Avengers watched with doubt and amused smiles, I held my breath. Personally, I thought that Thor's hammer did have a magic spell on it, but only as a security measure, so that he was the only one who could lift it. If it turned out that Thor was right, and it could be lifted by someone the hammer (or the spell) thought worthy…well, that'd only open up a whole other matter!

Even though I truly did think that Steve was worthy of wielding the hammer, I really wasn't ready to deal with him possessing superhuman or magical powers. Being married to Captain America was hard enough –being married to a magical, hammer-wielding, lightning-summoning Captain would be something else altogether!

Taking a deep breath, Steve put both hands on the hammer and pulled. Watching closely, I almost fainted as I saw the hammer move. Yes, it moved! I even heard the tiniest squeak from it as it shifted slightly!

Clamping my hands over my mouth, I held my breath as Steve tried again, only to fail to move it entirely.

Giving up good-naturedly, Steve gave a smile and a sigh before retaking his seat beside me, where I proceeded to give him a consolation kiss, to remind him that he was always worthy in my book. He returned the kiss and pulled me into his lap. When I looked over at the rest of the group, I noticed that Thor looked rather relieved at Steve's failure. Chuckling, I turned my head and saw Bruce motioning for Natasha to try.

"Oh, no; that's not a question I need answered," she said, taking a sip of beer.

Steve gently patted me on the back. "What about you?" he asked.

I laughed and shook my head. "Nope; not a question I need answered, either."

"Oh, come on, Adena," Tony said, waving towards the hammer with a glass of alcohol. "I'll bet you a new car that you'll at least move the thing more than Cap did."

"Not interested, and not curious," I replied. "Thanks, but no thanks!"

"It's rigged," Tony griped as he got up to refill his glass, all the while looking at the table.

"You bet your ass," Barton said, glancing over at us with a wink.

Maria pointed in his direction. "Steve, he said a bad-language word!"

Steve hung his head as I picked up a piece of fortune cooking and threw it at Maria's head. "You told them about that?" he sighed, glaring in Tony's direction.

"It probably says, whosoever possesses Thor's fingerprint shall move the hammer," Tony said, looking thoughtfully at it while avoiding Steve's question.

"Or, perhaps, it's a more simple reason," Thor said, rising from his chair and retrieving his hammer. "You're all not worthy."

As the others laughed and rolled their eyes, an earsplitting sound shot through the air. Everyone winced and covered their ears as the noise died away and a strange, strangled sound replaced it. What sounded like metal footsteps slowly staggered into the room, and I got to my feet with the others, to see what was coming.

The sight was very macabre: a hodge-podge of Iron Legion robot parts fused together, staggering around as sparks and wires fell from it. It looked as though it didn't know how to walk properly, or really even move.

"No," it said in a heavy male voice, "How could you be worthy? You're all…killers."

Steve slowly got to his feet and moved in front of me, his tall frame blocking me from the robot's line of sight. "Adena," he whispered in a tone so soft I almost missed it, "Get behind the couch."

That was my cue to move, oh-so-slowly, away from danger. There weren't many places to hide, but while the others tried to draw out the robot's name and purpose for being here, I ducked behind the couch. As much as I hated looking like a coward, I really was the most helpless of the gang –well, besides Dr. Cho.

"But I'm ready," the odd voice said. "I'm on a mission."

Natasha's voice carried over to my hiding place. "What mission?"

There was a short pause. "Peace in our time."

And then chaos exploded all around me.

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