Hey ya'll, this one is a little shorter, but I think you'll like where it's going. We've got some more action. Like I said before I'm kind of new at writing action sequences, so bare with me on this okay? Enjoy the chapter!
"Director Banner, I think something can be arranged." Agent Hayes said to me as I finished running my new idea by her. It had been a very tense couple of days, ones that were spent with virtually wordless mornings, and the same at nights. I had finally come up with a plan to make things better, because to be honest, it was killing me.
"Phil has agreed to everything, so all that really needs to be done is enforcement." I said and she nodded
"Don't forget damage control." she said and I looked at her as she smiled softly.
"That's very true Agent Hayes." I said and I sighed.
"Director Banner," she said softly and I looked over at her. "If you don't mind me saying," she used her electronic cane to tell where the edge of the table was. "Perhaps there's no better time than the present?" she asked and I smiled before I nodded. "I'm going to assume you're nodding right now." she said and I chuckled.
"You assume correctly." I said. "I'll let Phil know on my way out."
"Minnie, thank god you're here." Tony said as I walked to the house. "I need you to sign off on this."
"What is it?" I asked as I took the paper from him. "You want to bring in another scientist?" I asked and looked at him.
"Well I mean, I could outsource, there's a lab in Alaska, not too far from here, also, one of the states who hasn't got a chapter of the new age Hitler Youth, it would be easy."
"You have two scientists that you know personally, and there are three more down there."
"They're astrophysicists, not the kind of science I'm looking at, though they do know how to have a good conversation, they're not what I'm looking for."
"What are you looking for?"
"I want a cellular biologist." he said and I sighed before I took the paper and signed it.
"Don't make me regret this Tony." I said and he smiled.
"Come on, you're Minnie Banner, you don't regret anything."
"You know I'm kind of starting to regret it now." I said as he walked away.
"Uh... Mom?" Amanda asked when she and Kayla and Bruce walked through the door to the house and saw me in the kitchen.
"Yeah honey?" I asked and looked at her from where I was pulling down a bag of flour.
"Are you... Feeling okay?" she asked.
"Of course, why?" I asked and she shrugged as she casually walked towards the kitchen.
"Well you're...Here." she shrugged and I instantly was hit with a wave of guilt. I looked down and she instantly rushed over to me. "I didn't mean it like that, I just mean, you've been working so much, and things have been kind of-"
"I know what you meant." I said as I looked at her. "But I promise I won't disappear like that again."
"You don't have to work anymore?" Kayla asked from where she was in Bruce's arms.
"No Sweetie, I still have to work," I said and her face fell. "But I will be off of work before you go to bed every night now, so I'll be able to spend more time with you." I tried to smile and she grinned.
"Every night!?" she asked and I nodded.
"Every night." I said and she wiggled out of Bruce's arms, he set her down and she ran over to me and threw her arms around my knees.
"How'd you manage that?" Bruce asked and I looked at him.
"It's surprising the amount of leeway they give you when you remind them who you're married to." I said and he rolled his eyes.
"Well at least the other guy's good for something." he muttered and I rolled my eyes.
"Yeah little things like that." I shrugged and he smiled lightly. "So, who wants pancakes?" I asked and the girls both grinned as I pulled a bowl out of a cupboard- I had made sure to look through every cupboard when I first got home- and I set it down.
That night after dinner and when I had gotten the girl to bed I walked out to the living room where Bruce was writing in a notebook. I sat down on the couch next to him and looked at the paper where he was working on a very long scientific looking equation I had no hope of ever hoping to understand.
"Girls asleep?" he asked a moment later and I nodded.
"Well, Amanda wants to finish her book, but Kayla's sleeping." I said and he nodded as he continued to write. It was silent in the living room, he worked on whatever it was he was working on and I sat there on the couch. "I know it's going to take more for us and everything to get back to the way we used to be," I said softly and he looked up at me. "But I'm trying."
"I know," he replied, and gave me a small smile.
"Phil," I said and he looked up from a computer screen at me. It had been about a week since I had started the new rule of after I went to the house, unless it was an emergency, Phil was in charge, and so far the kids loved it, while Bruce and I were still working on some issues, we were doing better.
"Hey, you heading out?" he asked and I nodded.
"Unless there's anything that warrants my immediate attention?"
"Nothing comes to mind right-" he was cut off by the fact that the entire building started to shake. I was thrown to the floor when it did, as did he. We both moved to the doorway and he grabbed onto me, bracing us both, I held onto him, eyes wide as he held us there. "Are you okay?" he asked when it ended and I nodded before a loud siren went off.
"Sir," someone stumbled down the hall. "Director, thank god you're still here." he said as Phil helped me up.
"What is going on?" I asked and he looked at me before looking over his shoulder.
"There's something you should see Ma'am." he said as he walked down the hallways. I looked at Phil before I followed after him, Phil right on my heels. We went to one of the security rooms where two agents watched the camera monitors we had set up around the compound, the one that they were pointing at showed a very large creature. "It's coming right at us ma'am."
"How far away?" I asked and they shrugged.
"Not too far."
"I want a few agents in a helicopter; find out what the hell that is." I said and they nodded before calling up to the hangar. "Send an agent to my house; have them bring my girls to the panic room." I demanded and the other agent picked up the phone. "Phil, get in touch with the big guy."
"Are things so tough between you that you can't call your husband yourself?" Phil asked with a small smirk and I shot him a look.
"The Other big guy." I said and he nodded, knowing who I meant.
"Minnie, there you are!" I was surprised when Peter came running over to me, two agents chasing along behind him.
"Stand down, he's okay, I want people on the perimeter, go." I ordered and they nodded before going to collect some others and go to the fence. "What is it?"
"Remember when I told you Norman was having a lot of meetings with people like Luke Cage, and others like that?" he asked and I nodded as he opened the folder he was holding. "This picture got stuck on the back of another picture, so I forgot about it, but I was trying to get information together out of the files I managed to snag and your daughter pointed it out to me." he handed it to me and I looked at the picture before I gestured for him to walk with me.
"Phil, we're going to the lab!" I called to him. Peter and I went downstairs where Tony, Bruce and Dr. Selvig were looking startled and trying to keep their experiments from toppling over.
"Are we being bombed? Is Cap having crazy flashbacks? What's going on?" Tony asked as I walked over to Bruce and handed him the picture.
"What is this?" he asked looking at me.
"Is that who I think it is?"
"Depends. Do you think its General Ross, because if you do, then yeah, it is." he replied and I nodded before looking at Tony.
"There's a SHIELD file stating after the Harlem incident you were sent to General Ross to recruit a new agent and that you were unsuccessful." I said and he nodded.
"Yeah because Agent up there made it clear that we didn't want him." he defended himself.
"So it wasn't Bruce." I stated and he shook his head. "It wasn't the Hulk?" I clarified and he shook his head, a look of realization crossing his face before I turned to my husband.
"Bruce, how quickly can you get angry?" I asked softly and Peter looked at me curiously.
"What are we against here?" he asked as Tony started ushering us to the elevator.
"Dr. Selvig, you should get to the safe room." he said and Selvig nodded.
"Keep an eye on the girls for me." I said and he nodded again.
"Of course Minnie, good luck." he said to Bruce, Tony and Peter who nodded.
"Can someone please tell me why Mrs. Director of SHIELD who doesn't like issues is asking the Hulk to come out and play?" Peter asked.
"Aside from the fact that those two are cool?" Tony asked and Peter looked at me curiously.
"I am married to the man; it would be a little dangerous if the other guy didn't like me very much." I shrugged and he nodded.
"Director Banner," Agent Sitwell said as soon as the doors opened at the armory. "Agent Coulson sent me to tell you," he panted, out of breath. "It's the Abomination."
"Yeah..." I said softly before clearing my throat. "Jarvis," I called, Tony had since installed Jarvis into the mainframe for his own amusement, though I liked having him in the computers, knowing no one who wanted in could get in anymore. "Bring up video of the Harlem incident." A wall suddenly had video of the Hulk and the Abomination fighting, before cutting off.
"So he's the big, tan, scarier Hulk who destroyed Harlem..." Peter said looking a little nervous but like he was trying to cover up his nervousness with confidence.
"If I were you Parker, I'd be suiting up right now." I said and he stared at me for a long moment before he turned and ran to his room. Tony was already halfway in his suit, I was calling orders to people when Thor and Steve Rogers came in, Hawkeye had gone to the perimeter to try to slow down the Abomination, and Black Widow had gone in the helicopter to confirm. What surprised me was when Logan showed up as well, looking ready.
"What can I do?" he asked and Steve looked at him for a moment.
"You got a suit?" he asked and Logan looked at him. "Because if you do, you should suit up. Dr. Banner-"
"Give me a minute Cap." he said before he turned to me. "The girls are in the safe room?"
"Yeah, Dr. Selvig went down there too, and I'm sure Pepper's down there as well."
"You should get down there." he said softly and I smiled lightly before shaking my head.
"You know I can't." I said gently.
"Minnie, live feed." Natasha said in my ear before the video screen lit up again and showed the Abomination.
"Bruce," I said softly. "How did you stop him last time?"
"I got lucky." he said and I looked at him. He was taking his watch off and looking none too happy as he handed it to me. He looked at the screen again and sighed.
"Minnie, he's at the perimeter." Hawkeye said in my earpiece.
"He's not doing anything." I said as he stopped in front of the fence, the SHIELD team were out there, Hawkeye had taken the lead, the helicopter was buzzing near, but not within grabbing distance to the creature as he looked down at everyone, we were all quiet, the Avengers stood, watching, the Abomination stood there staring down at the lead team.
It was a tense, quiet moment before I looked at Bruce who was watching too. He looked at me and nodded. "Engage the target." I said and Hawkeye sent an arrow shooting straight at the Abomination. It hit him in the stomach before exploding.
The creature let out a deep roar before taking a swipe at the archer who managed to jump out of the way at the right time. Shooters started firing their guns at him while the huge tan, scarier hulk let out what sounded like a rumbling laugh.
"Is that the best you've got?" he growled before stomping on two of my gunmen.
"Guys..." I said hesitantly as I looked back at the Avengers.
"We're on it." Steve said before they ran outside, Spiderman was running back from his room, having changed into his uniform, and met the Avengers out there as they went to meet the beast at the perimeter.
Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I hope you like it! Please don't forget to review!