Hey all! Here's chapter seven. It's a bit boring in my opinion but it had to be done.

Comments: I want to apologize to miller330 for not giving you a shout out last chapter! Somehow in I managed to miss your name! Please forgive me! And thank you for your reviews Darling! I fully agree with taking things slow. That's how I roll... Wow. I'm so lame.

Shouts outs: miller330 (got cha!) and again to Texas Shewolf. Shanks very much!

Charlie woke up the next morning feeling the aches and pains before she even opened her eyes. When she did, she found herself alone. The ice bag Barton had given her was gone and there was a glass of water and two blue pills on the bedside table. There was also a folded note. Charlie reached, which was hard to do, for her glasses and the note. She put her glasses on and opened the piece of paper.

Thought you may need a bit of a relief when you woke.

-Clint

Charlie smiled and sat up slowly. She popped the two large pills in her mouth and drank the whole glass of water. She placed the glass back down on the bedside table and sat back, closing her eyes. Charlie wished she could just sit there for the rest of her life and not have a care in the world but how warm she was in her bed. Unfortunately, she drank the water too fast and she really needed to go to the bathroom. Charlie slowly crawled out of bed and walked to the bathroom. After, she looked in the mirror before she went back to her room. The bruises on her face had become uglier overnight and the gash on her forehead had begun to scab over. Charlie lifted up her shirt and looked at the black, purple and blue marks that littered her abdomen. Her hair had fallen out of its bun but she didn't feel like putting it back up. She let out a sigh and walked into her room.

Charlie heard the faint noise of talking through her closed bedroom door. She walked over to the door and opened it. Barton was sitting at the small dining table, feet propped up, with a steaming coffee mug in his hand. The source of the talking had been the TV, which was turned down to a low volume. Clint's gaze moved from the TV and fixed on Charlie as she stood in the doorway. He smiled and she returned the gesture.

"Morning." He said taking a sip of coffee. His hair was mussed from sleep and his clothes were unkempt.

"Morning." She said and walked over to the kitchenette.

"Rough night?" He said jokingly. Charlie laughed and stood in front of the coffee maker.

"You have no idea." She answered, playing along. She reached into a cupboard and got a coffee mug. She filled the cup up to the brim with the steaming black liquid. Leaning against the counter, Charlie took a sip of her coffee and looked at the TV. It was on a news channel and they were covering events form last night. Charlie half expected her face to flash across the screen and a headline reading FBI Agent helps take down mad French Man. Charlie looked at Clint. "What? No photo op? No crappy youtube video showing my heroic actions?" He looked at her and shook his head.

"No. That would just put you in more danger." Charlie pushed herself form the counter and went to sit at the table. She slowly eased herself into one of the wooden dining chairs and set her mug on the table top. She placed her crossed arms on the table and looked at Barton.

"Now what?" She asked. He shrugged and set his coffee cup down.

"Now we get you packed and we leave for the helicarrier. You will start working on finding Gabriel Menard with a team that Fury has made." Charlie nodded and turned her head to stare at the TV mindlessly. Was she really up for this or was she just fooling herself? She heard Clint shift and she turned her head back but only glanced at him. His feet were no longer propped on the table and he was sitting straight. "Are you alright?" Charlie felt like she'd been asked that many times since last night but she never really did answer it.

"No. Not at all. I've faced so many… horrible, terrifying and dangerous situations before. But this..." Charlie stopped to catch her breath. "This is totally different. I thought that if I ignored my power, that I could lie to myself and others about it, that it would go away and I wouldn't have to worry about it. But last night," Charlie closed her eyes and leaned her head back. "Someone was shot because of me and that is not okay. These people have targeted me. And for the first time since my parents were killed, I'm scared." Charlie felt a hand being placed on hers and she looked down. One of Clint's rough calloused hands lay on top of her small boney one.

"We all get scared, Charlie. But you are surrounded by people who will protect you." She wrapped her fingers around his and squeezed a little.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome." There was a knock on the door and they both looked up.

"I'm not expecting anyone."

"I am." He said as he let go of her hand and walked over to the door. Charlie picked up her mug but didn't drink from it. When Clint let go of her hand, it had become cold and she needed warmth. She watched him as he unlocked the door and opened it. He stood in her way so Charlie couldn't see who was on the other side of the door. She heard him talking low and she couldn't make out what he was saying. She did hear him murmur a 'thank you' and he closed the door. Charlie made herself look busy by taking sip of her coffee as Barton walked back into the living area. He set a small black duffel on the table.

"What's that? Could it perhaps be a present for me?" He smiled and shook his head.

"It's clothing for me. Can't go to work in your ex's clothes can I?"

"Well if you really wanted to, then yes." He laughed and she smiled a little. It actually kind of hurt to smile. She finished the rest of her coffee and stood up. "I guess I should probably change and pack a bag. What should I be packing anyways?" She watched as he took folded dark clothing out of the duffel and set them on the table.

"Mostly just personal items. Not too much clothing because you'll be wearing a uniform most of the time and they will give you other clothing too." The thought of wearing a uniform made Charlie cringe. She had to wear suits to work every day but she could pick what kind of suit she wanted to wear. Uniforms were so unoriginal and made everyone look the same. But she guessed that was the point.

"Alright. I'll try not to take an eternity to pack." She went to her room and closed the door behind her. Charlie stripped her night clothes off and got dressed in clean, comfortable clothing. She wore dark skinny jeans with a black belt. She wore a tank top underneath a plain black pull over hoodie with white drawstrings. She walked into the bathroom and put her hair into a French braid, curls falling out around her temples. After, Charlie dug her duffel out of her closet and placed it on the bed. She packed some clothes and her personal affects. After she was done, she sat on the bed beside the duffel and looked through her contacts on her cell phone until she found Harper's number. Charlie dialed the number and Harper picked up on the third ring.

"Charlie! I'm so glad you called! I haven't heard a word from you since last night when you SAVED MY LIFE!" She exclaimed through the phone. Charlie smiled to herself and shook her head.

"Yeah. Are you alright?" Charlie asked.

"Yes! I'm fine. Thanks to you, of course! A couple of bruises and my scalp hurts where that horrible man yanked me away by my hair but otherwise, I'm good. What about you? What happened after I left?"

"I took a hell of a beating but I'm alright. Thanks for asking."

"Are you sure you're alright? Do you want me to come over and so we can eat ice cream while we watch old movies?" Charlie laughed.

"That would be nice but I can't. That's actually why I'm calling you, Harper. I took the job at SHIELD and I'm leaving today. Many people, my colleagues, friends and you, were put in danger last night because that man was looking for me. I can't allow that to happen again. It turns out, that man has a partner who may also be targeting me. For what? I don't know. Nothing good, I can tell you that much. But I'm calling to say goodbye, for now. Director Fury is allowing me to leave for one weekend every month to have a break from SHIELD. I promise you that you and I will spend the whole weekend together and we can watch old movies and eat quarts of ice cream." When Charlie finished, there was no sound from the other end of the phone. "Harper?"

"Yeah. I'm here." Charlie heard her friend clear her throat. "If you think this is the best route for you, then go, Charlie. Find that bastards partner and take him down. Then come back to me and we'll celebrate." Charlie smiled.

"Thank you, Harper. I should probably go now."

"Okay. Love you Charles."

"Love you too, Harp."

"Be safe." She added.

"I will." Charlie hung up and set the cell in her lap and stared at the wall. Let's do this. Charlie put the phone in her duffel and zippered it up. She put her black lace up combat boots on, grabbed her duffel and walked out in the living area. Barton had gotten dressed while she was in her room. He wore dark pants, a black cargo jacket and boots. He also had a handgun strapped to each leg. Charlie dropped her duffel on the ground by the table and eyed the guns. "You know," she began, "if old Lady Jenkins from across the hall sees those, she will most certainly have a heart attack."

"Doesn't she ever see yours?" He asked, zipping his duffel up.

"Of course not! Mine is always hidden underneath my suit jacket, like it should be." She leaned back against the table.

"Well is she sees me, just tell her that I'm your body guard."

"I'm an FBI agent. Or I was anyways. I don't need a body guard." She crossed her arms and looked at him.

"Well with those bruises, you look like you need one." Charlie stood straight and smacked him on the arm.

"Are you ready to go? Because I'm ready." Clint picked up both of their duffels and smiled.

"Ready." She shook her head and they let her apartment. When they were elevator she asked, "What about paying for rent?"

"Oh, SHIELD takes care of that. No need to worry."

"How convenient." When they got outside, there was a black car waiting for them. Clint put their bags in the trunk and he opened the car door for her. She gave him a quick thanks and got in. He went around the car and got in. The car drove them to the airport and there was a jet waiting for them just like last time. "Oh great." She said as she got out of the car. Barton laughed and offered his arm. She happily took it and they got on the jet. It didn't take long for the jet to get to the helicarrier and land. Clint told her that her duffel would be waiting for her in her room later. When they got inside, someone was waiting for them. It was none other than Tony Stark. Charlie was a little blown away. She had never imagined she would ever meet someone such as Stark. Nor had she ever imagined she would be working for SHIELD. Charlie wished her face didn't look like she had smacked into a brick wall but there was nothing she could do.

"Who's your lady friend, Clint?" He asked. Clint rolled his eyes at Stark.

"Charlotte Anderson. Charlie for short." She extended her hand and he shook it.

"Ah. So you're the one Fury's been PMSing about." He took a good look at her face and said, "You look like you've been in a WWE smack down cage match. Do you fight illegally in underground clubs during your free time?" Charlie laughed and shook her head.

"I was actually trying out a new look. You don't like it?"

"No because I saw your profile picture and the Charlotte Anderson I saw was absolutely gorgeous the way she was." He smiled at her and she beamed back.

"I'll see what I can do." Charlie heard Clint clear his throat and she turned her head to look at him.

"We should get going." He said.

"Yeah, sure. The troops are all rallied up on the flight deck." Stark led them to the flight deck so that Charlie could meet the team that's been assigned to take down Gabriel. They all walked over to the table where several people sat and Fury stood at the head of it. "Hey Fury. The new girls here." Stark said taking a seat next to a brown haired man with glasses.

"Thanks for the introduction, Mr. Stark." Charlie said as she stopped to stand beside Fury. Clint moved to sit across the table from Stark.

"Anytime." He responded.

"Charlotte, this will be the team that will be helping to find Gabriel Menard and take him out." Fury indicated the female and male in uniform. "Agents Ballard and Dunn will be gathering any information from the past and present on Adrien and Gabriel. Dr. Bruce Banner, Stark and you will all work on locating Gabriel." Fury indicated the man sitting next to Stark. Charlie noticed that Steve Rogers was sitting beside Dr. Banner and she gave him a small smile which he returned. "Once Gabriel is located, Rogers, Barton and Stark will go in with a small team and take him out." Charlie was irritated that her name wasn't mentioned in the take out team.

"Hold up." She turned to Fury and placed a hand flat on the table. "Why am I not on the take out team?"

"It's too risky and if we were to find him soon, you aren't in any condition to go out in the field." Charlie didn't like it.

"What if we don't find him soon? What if I've healed by then? Then would I be able to go?"

"Fury. There's no use fighting with this girl. She's a determined one." Stark said. Charlie stared at Fury with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll think about it." Was all he said.

"Uh-huh. I'm sure you will." Charlie said taking her hand off of the table.

"Um excuse, Chuck? Can I call you Chuck?" Charlie turned her head to look at Stark. "Yes? Okay. So, what is it about you that's got Fury giggling like a schoolgirl?" Charlie's eyes quickly met everyone's at the table. She rolled her eyes and concentrated. Then she stuck her arm right through Fury's chest. Two gasps came from the SHIELD agents and Starks face lit up. Dr. Banner and Steve stared in wonder. Charlie looked up at Fury who was frowning down at her. Charlie cleared her throat and removed her arm from his chest.

"Can you manipulate other objects to have the same unquantifiable structure like you?" Dr. Banner asked. Charlie was a little unsure of what he was asking her. Stark must have seen her confused expression and translated.

"Can you make things go through other things."

"If I'm touching it, yes."

"Remarkable." Dr. Banner said, adjusting his glasses. Fury cut into the conversation.

"We should get you to your room. Barton can show you the way and then once you are situated, he can show you to the lab where you will work on locating Gabriel. You are all dismissed." They all stood and went their separate ways. Clint led Charlie through different corridors to get to her assigned room. They passed different uniformed agents on their way there. Clint stopped at a grey metal automatic door and Charlie noticed there was a tag on the door that said, Agent Charlotte Anderson.

"Well would you look at that." She said and then watched as Barton dug something out of his jacket pocket. He took out a key card and handed it to her. She took it and looked at the grainy image of herself. "They didn't get my good side in this one." She said, frowning at the ID.

"I'll see what I can do to get that changed." He said smiling.

"Thanks friend." Charlie inserted the card into the electronic lock and waited until the little light turned green. When it did, she opened the door and walked in. She walked into a small hallway with the separate bedroom and bathroom to the right. She walked farther in and it opened up into a small living area with a couple chairs, a couch and a TV. Light poured in from the far wall which was just a huge glass window looking out onto the never ending blue sky. Charlie sat on the couch and propped her feet up on the small glass coffee table. "Not too shabby."

"Your duffel is in your room. I'll leave you so you can unpack."

"Why?" she turned her head to look at him.

"Trust me. If I'm in the room, you will never get it done." He smiled and turned to leave. "I'll be back later to see if you're ready to go check out the lab." He called over his shoulder. Charlie waited until she heard the door shut to let out her tired sigh. Her body didn't ache as much as it had that morning because she took the meds but she was still physically and mentally tired. Charlie stood and walked over to the window. She leaned her forehead against the glass and closed her eyes. This is my new life. Charlotte Anderson, agent of SHIELD reporting for duty.