Disclaimer: I do not own anything pertaining to The Avengers or any of its associations.
''Well, if it isn't my favorite little spy,'' Tony Stark greeted when Natasha and Clint entered the debriefing room. He approached them with open arms, his fingers twitching to usher Natasha forward and into his embrace.
''You flatter me,'' Clint gasped, clutching his hand to his chest and stepping to intersect Tony's hug.
Tony's smile faded instantly into a grimace, and he placed his hands on Clint's shoulders to move him aside. His smile returned instantly when Natasha slipped her arms around him, and when she moved away he kept a gentle grip on her arms.
''It feels like it's been forever since I last saw you. You know, when you spied on me and tried to manipulate me and all that jazz,'' he said, with a twitchy smile. Ignoring her responding glare, he continued. ''So how have you been?''
''The same as always,'' she said blankly. ''How is Pepper?''
Tony released her and made a quick, careless gesture in the air with his hand. ''With her mother. Apparently I'm arrogant and insensitive and infuriating and blah blah blah,'' he said with dramatic a roll of his eyes.
''Finally came to her senses, did she?'' Natasha asked, her eyebrow rising slightly in surprise.
''She'll come around,'' he responded flippantly.
Natasha left Tony to greet the others. She had never met Bruce Banner or Steve Rogers, though she knew more than they probably would have liked her to about them. S.H.I.E.L.D. kept limited files on each of them, but Natasha was more than qualified to do her own digging.
They both shook her hand shyly, though she suspected for different reasons. She could tell by the nervous twitching of his face that Bruce suffered from social anxiety, and Steve's blushing meant that he was not blind to her beauty.
When everyone was acquainted, they settled into an uncomfortable silence as they waited for Director Fury to finish with the Asgardians and debrief them.
The blank stares that met Nick Fury at the end of his explanation made him question if the assembled heroes had even really heard him. He had to admit that the truth had him reeling as well, but it was undeniable. The shocked silence lasted for a few minutes before anyone spoke.
''What's the plan?'' Bruce asked finally.
Director Fury crossed his arms over his chest, and his head hung for a few moments. After some time passed he looked up to them again, and his face was drawn and grave. ''We go to war.''
''Let me get this straight,'' Clint said slowly, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. ''Apparently, gods and giants and whatever are real, and you want us to stick our noses in a war between them? You do remember that we are human, right?''
He glanced at Bruce, and then to Natasha, and then to Steve, before his eyes settled back on Director Fury. ''Well, mostly.''
They all sent him responding glares. ''I think what Agent Barton meant was...'' Steve explained wearily. ''Is it really our place to get involved?''
Before Director Fury could answer, Tony stood up.
''They brought this war to Earth, for the second time. It's obvious that they have no respect for the people here, and consider us the smallest threat in all of the nine realms,'' Tony said. He waved his hand toward Director Fury. ''Stop me if I'm wrong, Director, but what I have taken from this is that you want us to establish ourselves as a dominant player by waving our little band of heroes in their faces to show them what we are really capable of.''
There was a long silence when Tony was finished, as the others adjusted themselves to this new insight.
''To avoid something like this happening again, we need to be feared,'' Director Fury confirmed.
''Is it really smart to expose ourselves like that?'' Natasha asked. ''Look at what is happening now. It obviously doesn't matter how powerful you are, someone will still come to oppose you. Maybe some day the Frost Giants or the Asgardians or someone from the other realms will come for us. Wouldn't it be a better play to hide our strengths?''
''We have to survive this first,'' Bruce said with a shrug. ''I don't think hiding is an option anymore.''
''Not now, not that he's rented us out,'' Clint added, anger edging his words.
''What if they turn on us after we help them?'' Steve asked, one of his eyebrows raised slightly. ''Agent Romanoff brought up a valid point. The Asgardians will see how strong we are when we are fighting at their side. They could easily turn on us after we defeat the Frost Giants and eliminate whatever potential threat we could become in the future.''
''What do you suggest we do then?'' Director Fury demanded, his face twisted in displeasure at their opposition. ''Put the fate of our world in their hands? They don't give a fuck what happens to us. We might as well have people who do care have their input in this war. We can worry about the consequences later.''
No one else spoke up, and Director Fury's agitation calmed. ''You have all been given temporary living quarters here for the night, as have the Asgardians. Get something to eat, and then get some rest. In the morning they will send for their army, and then we go to war.''
The Avengers all went to the cafeteria together, and were surprised to find the Asgardians were there as well. The room was clear of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and Natasha wondered if that was due to Director Fury or if they had cleared out on their own in fear. She suppressed a frown when the thought occurred to her, that maybe she should fear them.
All of the Asgardians crowded around one table, as they probably did at home. The table was piled high with trays of the different foods the cafeteria offered, and most were already empty. After Natasha had gotten her food, she hesitated to find a seat, wanting an excuse to observe the gods further.
Odin ate heartily, but with an elegance that the others lacked. He did not join the youths in their jests, but watched over them with a silent authority. Thor and the Warriors Three lacked his class, shoveling food into their mouths and talking through it without hesitations. Sif commented often about their lack of proper etiquette, though she ate like a bird herself.
Natasha's eyes fell last to Loki, who ate slowly and meticulously. It was only as she watched him that she realized he sat slightly away from the others, a dark presence at the end of their table like a shadow. He was nearest to Thor, but not only were there two seats between them but his body was inclined away as well.
''Should we mingle?'' Steve asked her. Her lips pressed into a tight line, embarrassed that he had noticed her observations though she knew only a few seconds had passed.
''We're not here to make friends,'' she said sharply, moving away from him and finding a seat near the cafeteria doors. As she set down her tray she felt eyes on her, and she was surprised to find they belonged to Loki. She wondered if he had heard her, but when he looked away apathetically she dismissed the thought.
Clint sat down in front of her, and the others slowly dribbled over as well. They sat in silence together as they finished their food, drowning out the conversation that the Asgardians were practically shouting to each other across their table.
It was only when the Avengers got up to put their dirty trays away and leave for their quarters that Natasha realized the conversation had turned to her. The warrior she had defeated, Fandral, was red in the face and glaring daggers at her across the room.
''It was a dirty trick,'' he was mumbling over the laughter of the others. ''If that is her skill, we have no need of it. We already have a silver tongue among us, and that is one too many.'' He drew his glass of water to his lips, but it never made it intact.
The shot rang out and the room fell dead silent, except for the soft trickle of water falling from the table to the tiled floor. Natasha gazed over the barrel of her gun for only a moment before slipping it back into its holster at her waist. ''That is not my only skill,'' she said lowly, before turning on her heel and disappearing into the hallway.
Everyone left in the room gaped after her, and Fandral looked like he was going to be sick. He discarded the last few remainging shards of his glass to the table, and looked down to the food in front of him that had been ruined by the water.
They finished their meals in silence, the only sound breaking through from the hallway. Director Fury was reprimanding Natasha for discharging her weapon at the Asgardian and explaining that she would have to spend the rest of the night locked away from the others. She did not protest.
The others dispersed into their quarters a short while later, and sank into the cool comfort of their provided beds. Their end of the facility shut down and the rooms went dark, with only the hallways in between still alight.
There were cameras in each room to keep an eye on the Asgardians, but the Midgardian technology failed to register the one bed besides Natasha's that remained empty that night.
The mischief maker wasted only the slightest flicker of his gaze back to his projection on the bed, before he slipped out the door of his room and disappeared completely.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review!