It's been far too long and I'm so sorry about it! Thank you so much for your patience and your encouragement! I love reading your reviews and knowing that you're enjoying it. August ended up being one really hectic month for me (I did some travelling and I started grad school, wow). There may be some more little waits since I am back in school so I apologize in advance. But I hope you really enjoy this chapter. The Avengers are finally in it! As usual, I own nothing but Katia.

Five minutes, I think. You can handle five minutes.

I'm standing in front of the showers. After spending a painstaking amount of time hiding Agent Basso's body in one of the empty medical cabinets in an abandoned lab, I've decided that I can't avoid bathing any longer. I am covered in blood, which, beyond being gross, is rather incriminating.

Five minutes, I chant, placing Agent Basso's handgun on the counter beside a new gray dress and my jacket. Five minutes.

I shed my bloody dress and do my best to hide it. Hands shaking, I turn on a shower head. You're better than this, Katia. Please don't lose it right now. As I continue to lecture myself on how absolutely necessary this is, I duck under the water. It's bad, horrible, a whole myriad of things, but I stay there until the drain runs red with blood. I scrub my arms and legs until they're red too and eagerly turn the faucet off.

I'm shaking as I dry off. No more water for a while. You did it, Katia.

I just killed somebody. Someone who deserved it but I doubt Baron Von Strucker will see it that way. But Clint's coming for me, I tell myself. There's no way Clint isn't coming. Hopefully, the twins and I won't have to deal with Hydra much longer. For a minute, I can actually see us on our way out of here, with this whole place a distant memory. Part of me knows that it won't be that simple, not when Pietro and Wanda had rankled at the idea of involving Clint before. And I would bet my life that Clint won't be coming by himself, not when I've been off the radar this long. But they'll see reason. They have to realize that, just like before, the three of us can't do it on our own. Clint, and whoever he chooses to involve, will make our safety a priority. Hell, if Pietro and Wanda want to stick around Sokovia, I'm sure that won't be a problem.

Except that S.H.I.E.L.D. monitors enhanced. Even if the organization is totally dissolved, they might still be interested in that. Besides, I have to selfishly admit that I want them to come with me. Especially now that I have abilities, I don't particularly feel like being separated from them. Clint will understand that, I think. Clint will help you.

I pull on my new dress and the jacket. I have nowhere inconspicuous to stick the handgun but I need to keep it on me. People will wonder where Agent Basso is and it won't be long before they figure out that I was the last person to be seen with him. If his body is found, I practically left my electric calling card on his chest. I need to have the gun in case this all goes south. It's what I'm most comfortable with, powers of electricity or not. Still, keeping it in my jacket pocket is also a dead giveaway that I had something to do with his disappearance.

I groan and pocket the gun anyway. Then I head up to my bunk.

I hesitantly walk in and realize that the twins are already asleep. Wanda is curled up on the top bunk, looking like she fell asleep waiting up for me, and Pietro is splayed out on his stomach. I actually sigh in relief. I don't want to answer questions. It might just take a single prompt and I start telling them that they were threatened with more torture, that Hydra wants me to help with their robotics program, that I barely touched Basso and before he hit the floor, he was dead.

"Katia," Pietro whispers. I pause in the midst of hiding Agent Basso's gun under my mattress. "What are you doing? Are you all right?" I look over my shoulder to see him sitting up, silver hair sticking up everywhere and totally groggy.

"I just got back from the basement," I reply. Wanda lets out a ragged breath.

He nods, rubbing his eyes. He wants to say, "I can see that, Katia. I mean why is your hair wet, why is there blood under your nails, why are you shaking?" in that sweet accent of his.Or maybe he doesn't. It's just as likely that he doesn't notice anything's different at all.

"Your hair is wet," he mutters. "Did they hurt you?" I didn't know that whispering could convey that amount of anger but his question did so adequately enough. I admit to myself that I really like that. They've taken me in, I realize. They might actually have adopted me as one of their own.

I shake my head and go back to looking at my bunk, the gun unloaded and securely beneath it. "No," I whisper. "They didn't hurt me." They wanted to hurt you.

I hear a tiny whoosh and Pietro is suddenly standing beside me. "But you are shaking." Huh, I think. Two out of three ain't bad.

I cut my eyes at him and decide that I have to tell him. He's worried, needlessly so because I might just be dangerous. "I killed Agent Basso," I admit.

"What?" I'm surprised that there's no judgment in his expression. Worry still colors his face.

"It was an accident." I realize I'm ashamed and not for the fact that I killed him. I don't have any idea what I'm capable of. I'm not in control of my abilities and control is everything to S.H.I.E.L.D. What will they do when they see what's happened to me? For all I know, they could be just as ruthless as Von Strucker has always been. Not Clint, I tell myself. Clint will protect me.

"He deserved it," Pietro proclaims. He brushes a hand over my arm. "Do you need help hiding him?"

I look at Pietro in utter bewilderment for a second. Did he just offer to help me hide a body? When he nods at me, I realize that he's serious. "I already did that. Shoved him in a cabinet in one of the empty labs."

"How did you manage that?"

"I honestly don't know," I reply. "I don't even know how I killed him."

"Tell me what happened," he whispers. Pietro looks so genuine, blue eyes wide, sort of smiling. So I sink down onto my bunk and try to tell him the version of the story he'd want to hear. It's essentially the same tale, it just leaves aside all mention of Clint and trying to get in contact with him. I have hope that he and Wanda will see my side of things and join me but for now, it's much safer to just let the Avengers show up.

"I know he deserved it and I know it wasn't intentional but it could not have happened at a worse time," I whisper. Logically, I understand that tonight was possibly the best time to lay Basso out because Clint could be here at any moment in the next few hours, but there's still enough time for me to be punished for it, potentially with a bullet to my head.

"But you do not feel guilty," Pietro asserts. He has a hand against my back and damn it, I like that.

"I should, shouldn't I? But I don't."

He shakes his head quickly. "Of course not! He was a monster to you."

"Yes, he was. Now, I just have to hope that no one stumbles on him. Life's been hard enough without another reason for Hydra to hate me." He grins and it is utterly disarming. Damn it. "Well, thanks for listening to me. Sorry I woke you up again."

He moves away from me, as if he's realized that he was too close, and shrugs. "I do not mind. But typically, if a girl wakes me in the middle of the night, it's not to tell me she's killed someone." He winks and I push him out of my bunk with a smirk.

"Go to bed, lady killer."

I sleep uncomfortably, both craving and dreading rescue. We are awakened by a large boom. The compound shakes, the shoddy lights flicker in our room, and dirt streams down from the ancient ceiling. God bless you, Clint, I think.

"What is going on?" Wanda asks.

"I don't know," Pietro responds.

"We're under attack," I say. It's a pretty neutral way to get them to take this seriously. "Wanda, can I have a pair of boots?"

"Yes," she replies. I pull on the boots, load Agent Basso's gun, and tuck it down the side of one of them.

As another bang shakes the castle, the door to the room opens, revealing Dr. List. "As you can tell, we're under attack," he explains. I can see from his demeanor that Hydra knows who's out there and that they don't stand much of a chance. "Come down to the basement, where it's safer." He waves the three of us out.

"It's the Avengers," Wanda whispers. Dr. List doesn't even bother asking how she figured that out. It's obvious that she read him. I hope she hasn't read me.

Pietro tenses up and Wanda links their fingers. Rage appears coiled in her too. My heart actually begins to feel like it's breaking. I know in this moment that I have majorly misjudged this situation. I know that I have made a mistake that I will never recover from. They won't come with me. They won't trust me. They will abhor me for doing this. I pray that Clint left Tony Stark back at his wrecked Malibu mansion, cloistered there with Pepper Potts and his various machines. But I know that hope is futile.

The twins and I stay close together in a cove of the basement. Hydra agents, more than I thought were even at this base, are eagerly erasing computer systems, shutting down programs, and destroying evidence. I see the articles that clued me in to Hydra going through shredders. A file with my picture clipped on the front is burned, along with what must be a hundred others. They can't destroy it all, I think, because I remember everything. I remember what they did to me and what they did to the twins. I remember the innocent people they killed. My fingers twitch and all the computer screens go black.

Pietro takes my hand. "This is it," he whispers in my ear, making my skin prickle with goosebumps. "If we can escape the Avengers, we'll finally be free." I make myself nod, even as I feel guilt pool in the pit of my stomach. I imagine him casting me away when he hears that I'm responsible for this. I can hear Pietro and Wanda tell me that they would choose Hydra over S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers any day.

"Whatever happens, will you stay with me?" I ask. Wanda looks at me incredulously. Pietro arches a dark eyebrow.

"Of course," Wanda replies. "You are family now." Pietro nods at me eagerly. The pit in my stomach only grows heavier.

"Why would you think we would leave you behind?" he questions. I shake my head and Baron Von Strucker finally enters the basement.

"Where's Basso?" Von Strucker calls. His gun suddenly feels like a weight against my calf.

"Damn," I say under my breath.

When Von Strucker walks by us, Pietro says that he saw Agent Basso going out to check on the bunkers in the valley. "Of course," Baron Von Strucker laments. "He just can't follow orders." Pietro gives me a wink and I smile at him. I don't have time to thank him or even wonder at him saving me some grief because Von Strucker turns his gaze on me. "Ridley, just the girl I've been looking for."

I don't have the chance to object. Von Strucker has pulled me out of the cove and pushed me toward a table. He puts a knife to my throat and I feel it nick the tender skin of my neck. Pietro pushes him off of me before he can do anymore damage. I let the twins pull me back into the little alcove. Wanda runs a finger across the blood on my throat and Pietro's hands frame my waist.

Von Strucker takes only a moment to recover. "You think you're smart, don't you, girl?" he demands, pointing at me. "Calling all your old friends to come save you? What is Barton to you anyway? A replacement for your piss-poor father? Your idol in life?" I feel tears well in my eyes when Wanda jerks back and Pietro's hands fall away from me.

"No," I make myself say. "He's going to kill you, like I've always wanted to."

"You are the one who called them?" Wanda asks in disbelief.

I have to nod. "Yes. I didn't think we could escape on our own." I don't miss the red in her eyes or the betrayal on Pietro's face.

"You lied to me," Pietro accuses. Omitting isn't the same thing as lying, I think, even as I know that it is. There's something more to Pietro than just anger. I am shocked to recognize it as jealousy.

"I hope you're happy, Ridley," Von Strucker says, "because you're about to go from my entertainment to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s."

"Very," I reply, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. The compound shakes again and I have to grip the wall to stay standing.

"No surrender!" Von Strucker yells and everyone responds in kind. He gives me a look, like he might finally murder me here and now, but luckily, Dr. List pulls him away. I hear Von Strucker tell him, "I am going to surrender."

Even as they continue moving away and the booms become louder, I hear some of their conversation. I concentrate on it to block out the glares of Wanda and Pietro. Both of them appear to be itching to give me a good shake, maybe worse than that.

"Everything we've accomplished here…" Von Strucker trails off. "But we're on the verge of our greatest breakthrough."

"Then let's show them what we've accomplished," Dr. List responds. "Finish off Ridley and send out the twins." That bastard, I think. Sometimes, he wasn't half bad.

"It's too soon."

"It's what they signed up for."

Pietro grabs my wrist and drags me out of the basement. Neither of them say anything until we reach a dark hallway. The lights flicker on and off at various intervals. I'm not sure whether that's because of the attack or my nerves.

"Katia, do you not understand what they are?" Wanda genuinely asks.

"Clearly, she does not!" Pietro exclaims. Wanda holds up a hand, like that'll calm him down.

"You are the ones who don't know what they are," I say. "Their job is literally to help people in need. They're heroes and whether you want to believe it or not, we do need their help to get out of here."

"I would rather stay here than accept their so-called 'help.'" I knew that was coming.

"Maybe you do but I didn't ask for this." As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I know that they are a mistake. Wanda actually flinches and Pietro's eyes darken with something worse than the anger and jealousy I saw earlier. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Oh, we know what you meant," Wanda spits out.

"Hate me, forgive me, I don't care. We can deal with that once this base has been blown sky high. I just want you to be safe. I want to get you out of here. I want to protect you. That's all I've ever wanted." They know that's true, I think. They have to know that's true, at least.

"We can protect ourselves," Pietro asserts. He leaves no doubt as to who he means; he and Wanda. "And we could have protected you too. You knew we hated them, Katia! Why would you do this?"

"Look, the Avengers aren't just Tony Stark. The odds are high that you'll like at least one of the other five."

"That is not likely," Pietro tells me. "Why go to them at all? S.H.I.E.L.D. helped do this to you! The Avengers had forgotten you! We never will." As he says this, it occurs to me that my relationship with them goes well beyond the bounds of human decency, which was all it had started as. Yes, I had been infatuated with the Maximoff twins the moment I met them so maybe it was always a little something more. But wanting to spare them torture, wanting to save their lives, came down to knowing they were innocent and didn't deserve the pain. It wasn't because I was in love with them and would do anything for them. But I realize now, perhaps vainly, that the opposite is true for Pietro and Wanda. Taking me in, caring about me, had been a risky endeavor and something neither took lightly but they'd done it all the same. Saving my life, doing everything in their power to make sure I survived, not leaving me behind when they absolutely should have, didn't come down to doing the right thing. Doing the right thing is my mantra but it has never been Pietro and Wanda's. I feel happy when I realize they love me and consider me one of their own, an orphan who hasn't had anyone other than Clint in a long time, but I also feel sad. Sad that I've called the Avengers without their advice, sad that they think I've betrayed them. It's true, they could've escaped this place without my help but they didn't. They stayed for me. And I owe them because of that.

"I am so sorry," I whisper, even though I know that no apology will ever adequately cover it. He grimaces and zooms past me in a blur of blue and white. "Where is he going?" I ask, though I'm sure I know.

"Where do you think? He wants to fight them," Wanda says matter-of-factly.

"Is he crazy?! He could be killed!" I demand, immediately pulling the handgun out of my boot. "They have a Hulk!" I cock the gun. "Damn it. Stay here," I tell her. I know it might be counter-intuitive but it's better that she's out of the Hulk's warpath. I've never seen it but I'm sure it's horrible.

Wanda wants to question me. I think she fears I'll abandon her and Pietro. "I won't go with them," I promise. I don't know how I'll manage that but I promise it anyway.

Before she can say anything, I take off running. I wrack my brain, trying to remember the escape route we planned to use all those months ago. I had it memorized, though not as clearly as Pietro. I'm out of breath when I run into a Hydra agent. I jerk back and yell when he shoots me in the left shoulder with a scepter-fueled gun. Even injured, I manage to kill him with a headshot. Lights shatter as I run the rest of the way to the train tunnel, blood trailing behind me. By the time I wander outside into the snow, I'm lightheaded and surely pale. I'm no longer in any sort of position to aid Pietro or even save myself. I realize dejectedly that leaving with Clint will be the only way to assure that I live through this. A shoulder wound isn't necessarily a kill-shot but it can quickly become one if I manage to bleed out in the snow.

I pass through the electric shield and lean against a tree to avoid the gunshots and blasts. Instead of appreciating my first time outside in months, I pull back my jacket and dress and look at my injury. I have to put part of my jacket in my mouth to keep from crying out when I touch it. It's bad. Blood stains the front of my gown and runs over my fingers. I take a deep breath and suck it up.

I keep pressure on my shoulder as I move through the valley toward the action. I'll need medical attention soon or I could pass out. The wound itself is gory and frankly, I'm in a lot of pain. But I have to try and save Pietro from himself. Or from getting trampled. Whatever happens first. If he shows himself as an enemy, by attacking any member of the team, they won't hesitate before shooting him. I doubt they'd catch him. In fact, the only real danger he may face is the Hulk and I stand no chance against that either. But I owe it to Pietro to at least give it a shot. If the most I do is let Clint and Natasha know he's friendly, I'll feel successful.

I stumble into a clearing, miraculously escaping further harm from one of the Hydra bunkers hidden farther down the mountain. I don't see Pietro anywhere but I do catch a flash of an arrow and an explosion farther away. "Clint!" I yell.

"Kat!" My legs almost give out from under me when he struts into the clearing. I drop Basso's gun and the pressure on my shoulder to run to Clint and wrap him in my arms. I ignore my pain and let my shaky fingers dig into his shoulders. I've never been held in so firm and safe a grip. For a moment, I'm just a normal girl again. A girl in hand-me-downs with an exceptional trigger finger, not someone who's been tortured and knocked on death's door. "You look terrible but God, are you a sight for sore eyes," he says. I laugh.

"So are you," I murmur. I want to cry, I'm so happy to see him.

"I've been looking everywhere for you! It's been over a year!" Clint pulls away from me and puts his hands to my face. I have missed this. "Are you all right? Who's blood is this?"

"I've been shot," I admit.

"Tell me you nailed the bastard."

"Please," I scoff. "It's like you don't even know me." He gives me a crooked smile.

"That's my girl." He pulls away to speak into his mic. "Katia's been hit. Requesting immediate evac."

"No, I've got to help you. You won't be able to get through the shield."

"Well, we've been shooting at it, Kat. I'm not sure you could do anything that we haven't been trying."

"Trust me, I'm the only one that can do this." Now's not the time to pull out the I-was-tortured-and-gained-wild-powers card.

"So should I do it quickly or slowly?" he asks when I turn to continue my hunt for Pietro.

"What are you talking about?"

"When we kill Von Strucker. Quickly or slowly?"

"Slowly," I declare. Clint solemnly nods.

He pulls me to him just in time to miss a Hydra blast. "Get behind me," he says, drawing an arrow. I obey him. I'm too weak to do otherwise. Blood starts to run between my fingers when I press them against my wound. It trails down my arm as he fires. The arrow never hits its mark. It's swept away in a whirl of blue and white. "What the- Did you see that?"

"Yeah," I reply weakly. Clint draws another arrow and I press a bloody hand against his arm. "Don't shoot him."

"Him?" Clint looks at me over his shoulder and I nod. "We've got an enhanced," he says into his mic but he keeps his bow taut. I let my grip on his arm tighten.

"Clint, don't shoot him," I beg. "He's not Hydra."

"Then why'd he stop me from blowing that bunker?" I have no answer for that. I drop my hold on him as he thrusts me back against a tree. Before Clint has the chance to fire, he's on the ground. Despite everything, I smile.

Pietro slows for only a second. "You didn't see that coming?" he asks slyly. Clint is on his knees and ready to fire a shot in the next instant.

"Clint, this is…" I trail off because Pietro's already gone. "Pietro." Clint gets to his feet and I slowly move towards him. "Are you hurt?"

"Just my pride," he allows. "Look, we need to get you onto the quinjet. You're bleeding out. I'll deal with this. Nat!"

"No, let me take down the shield. And I can talk him down too. Just give me a chance."

Clint is going to refuse me, I can tell, but he never has the opportunity to voice it. I hear a blast and automatically push Clint out of the way. I expect to feel the impact but instead, I hit the forest floor, groaning with Pietro on top of me. Snow clumps in my hair, rubs against the bare skin of my legs, and I begin to shiver. Clint yells. More gunshots ring out and Pietro presses me closer to the ground. I wrap my arms around him to get a better grip. If I strain, I can see Clint moaning in the snow. Natasha dashes between the trees toward him. I hear her yell, "Clint's been hit!" No, I think. Please don't let it be bad.

"Somebody take out that bunker!" Natasha commands when I hear another blast. I try to bring Pietro closer to me, as if that might make him safer. His breath is ragged against my cheek and his chest is practically crushing mine. I hear another boom, one that makes the earth shake and makes Pietro hold me tighter. When he moves away from me, I know it's over and truthfully, I'm a little disappointed. You are stupid, Katia, I tell myself. Or delusional from blood loss. "Katia!"

I hold up a hand at Natasha when I see her raise a gun. "I'm okay! He's my friend!" I call. "Help Clint!" Pietro makes me sit up and I know I'm bad off when I can't do it by myself. "Thank you," I tell him. He nods, almost bashfully.

"What happened to you?" he asks. Winter looks good on Pietro. The cold colors his cheeks pink and his shock of white hair almost lets him blend in.

"Hydra shot me before I made it outside." I don't complain when he pulls away my jacket and dress to look at my injury. I just look over at Natasha and Clint, who's still splayed out on the ground. Pietro grimaces and puts his hand against my shoulder, trying to stave off more bleeding. "It's that bad, huh?"

"I don't know how you are still conscious," he replies.

"Katia!" Natasha says. She's approaching but still managing to keep a safe distance. Pietro wants to run so I make myself grab his hand. "Thor is coming for you and Clint." I feel a hint of excitement at Thor's name. I've never met him.

"Tell him to wait until I get the electric shield down," I reply.

"Katia, what exactly do you think you can do?"

"Just trust me. It's your only way in." I can see her react to a command so I turn back to Pietro.

"If you try and destroy the shield, it could kill you," he says solemnly. I still see a flair of envy in his eyes. I know he doesn't understand why I want to help the Avengers but I don't have the time to explain it. In truth, I don't have much time left at all. I could fall unconscious at any time.

"They won't stop until they get the scepter. Just let me do it."

"Wanda won't let them take it." I shake my head at him.

"Listen, I've got to go with them," I tell him. "Scepter or not, you're going to have to let them take me."

"Oh, and that is what you want, is it not?" he replies spitefully. I expect him to pull away from me and dash off but Pietro just looks at me and clenches his jaw.

"Please don't get mad at me. I know I've made some mistakes but I'm bad off, Pietro. I know you can see that. S.H.I.E.L.D. has got things that'll heal me up in a couple of days. They can help me with this. You can't. I'm sorry but you can't." He looks disappointed and furious all in one. I hate myself for it.

There is a long pause and again, I think he'll just run away from me. "All right." He pulls me to my feet. Blood has stained the snow beneath me.

"Come with me," I plead before I can regret it. "I don't want to be without you and Wanda. I'll make sure you never see Tony Stark, whatever you want. Just please come with me." Pietro appears to contemplate that but there's a crack that sounds an awful lot like lightning and his hand leaves mine.

My gaze falls on what must be Thor. He lands in the snow with braided blonde hair and a rich red cape. He drops his hammer beside Clint. I stumble back at the hum of power that wafts away from it. I brush dark hair away from my face to get a better look at him. Thor is stunning and wildly electric. My bloody fingers start to twitch, which makes me remember the shield.

When I turn back, Pietro has disappeared and even though I've been shot today, that's the most painful blow I've been dealt yet.

"Katia," a powerful voice says.

"Take Clint first," I reply. "Come back for me." He wants to object but he lets me go anyway.

I wander back towards the compound and I know I'm near the shield before I feel it. I raise my hands and spread my fingers. Blood drips from one hand into the snow. I close my eyes and concentrate. My fingertips spark with a vitality I didn't know I had and I feel it ripple away from me. Time seems to slow and what energy I had left drains. Finally, I feel the shield give way under my touch. I crumple to the ground, finally unconscious.