Oooh, robbie, I'm so glad that you're enjoying this. Really. 3 They really are super attached already, it's pretty easy to see who's attached to who. They are their own unit without even having tried to be as much. And yeah ... SHIELD isn't all that different in how they handle some things. Sad but true.

and both of you - robbie and Scruffy - Scott standing up to Tony was something that I was DELIGHTED about. he's just so ... he's got that leadership gene going strong, man. I love it. omg.

Chapter 36: Super Secret Agent

It was still a solid hour after they'd gone through the scans before Coulson showed up with that irritatingly sedate expression on his face. "If you'd be so kind as to follow me," he said, his hands at his sides, and only pausing for a moment before he started to move again.

Logan was on his trail in an instant, his claws itching for a fight with every single set of doors that they passed through. Scott was striding fast to keep up, and neither of them missed the fact that security seemed to get more and more eerie and impressive the further they got into the sublevels of the building until finally Coulson stopped in front of a plain looking door.

"We haven't finished our security clearances," Coulson told them. "But I assure you, I'm pulling every favor I have to get her out of here faster. Until then though … you can see her for yourself." He held their gazes one by one before he opened the door for them and held it open as they passed by. Coulson stepped in after them and it was apparent right away that they were in a hidden room behind one way glass - and K was on the other side simply sitting on a cot with her knees drawn up to her chest.

Logan looked as if he was holding his breath when he saw the setup. "I want in," he said, but Coulson gestured to the chair nearest Logan, and it was apparent that for the immediate future, all was able to do was pull out a chair and take a seat.

"I can't let you in yet," Coulson said. "But as you can see - she is at the very least safe." He set a small device on the table near Logan, one red light glowing on it. "And between just us? I want her out as much as you do. I just have to find a way to do it in the protocols since so many bells were triggered between the department's raid, the damage done at the attempted abduction site, and then of course - in such close conjunction to the panic button - basically, all of the flags were thrown up at once."

"None of that was her," Scott said quickly. "That - that was all my fault."

But Coulson shook his head. "No, you don't seem to understand," Coulson said. "I put her there. I had her hidden. She's not showing any records within SHIELD because I made sure that they don't exist. If something happened, she was supposed to disappear with her contact. But that didn't happen."

"That was also my fault," Scott insisted.

"I can assure you, Mr. Summers, the chances of all of this being an accident - you two going to that area to hide so close to where I had her hidden off record? Next to nothing. Fury suspects. And so you know, if she didn't want to get you out of there, she would not have. If she wanted to shrug off her contact, that was going to happen too."

"Then it sounds like you already know her. So you're holding yourself up," Scott pointed out.

"There is a lot in play here - and most of it doesn't have a thing to do with me personally," Coulson said. "But I can promise you that there is no way that I'm going to stand by and allow her to be locked up by SHIELD or anyone else."

Logan had dropped his gaze to the floor partway through Coulson's explanation, and though Scott looked as if he wasn't sure how to take that, Logan was positive he knew exactly what that meant. "It's not entirely a compliment," Logan said. "If SHIELD has her, then she's in the system and that means the Department can find her."

"That … also is true," Coulson said with a nod. "I've already rerouted Stark's search protocols. I don't want them fishing for her. Particularly when the call to arms was specifically for just the two of you." Coulson let out a breath and leaned against the table. "Against all reason, her cover was intact, and as far as I can see the only thing that's keeping it like that is Victor Creed keeping his mouth shut."

"That won't last," Logan said flatly.

"You might just be surprised," Coulson replied. He reached over to pick up the device, turning it off before he stuck it back in his suit pocket and then he gestured to the glass. "You have a little time. The glass will absorb vibrations, so … I'm afraid this is as close as we can get right now."

"When do we get to go in - or get her out?" Logan asked, frowning as he watched her sitting almost perfectly still.

"I don't know that yet," Coulson replied. "I'll be back in a little while to take you back topside."

Logan nodded and settled in - though he reached over to pull the other chair out for Scott. He waited for Coulson to leave them alone before he spoke up. "What do you think?"

Scott took a long, deep breath as he weighed it out. "I think… she got us out. And I trust her. And I'm not going to leave her like this," he said, gesturing to the window, where K was still seated very quietly.

"I was thinking more about the how," Logan said. "Weighin' out trusting Cap and giving it a chance or just … poppin' my claws and tearing through that glass right now." He tipped his chin down and narrowed his eyes. "Pretty sure we could fight our way out easy enough."

He drew in a breath and leaned back. "Of course … then we won't have any back up if they catch up again." Logan finally broke his focus from K to turn toward Scott. "I'm not leavin' you vulnerable like that. Especially if you're on the list now."

"So," Scott said, tipping his head to the side. "We wait, I guess."

"Don't see any other way right now," Logan agreed.

Nothing changed - not in the cell or out of it for a long while, and when Coulson returned to take them back to the more 'civil' side of the building, both Logan and Scott looked reluctant to leave, but it was clear that they wouldn't be able to stick around.

"She'll be asked a few questions, and once she cooperates and answers them - and … goes through the scanner … I'll make sure she gets back to you."

Scott waited until they were a little further out before he turned to Logan. "How long do we wait before we go to Plan B?" he asked.

Logan smirked at that. "Probably gonna have to just follow our gut on this one," Logan replied quietly. "So anywhere from a few minutes to a day or two. Depending."

"That… is a pretty wide range," Scott said with a frown.

"All comes down to them," Logan said, keeping his gaze down the hall they were walking in. "For instance … a bunch of soldiers not wearing any identification dropping in and shoving guns in our faces didn't really scream 'friendly' to me, so if I see anything like that … it's gonna be a lot sooner."

Scott nodded and then chewed on his lower lip for a moment. "I'm sorry about the panic button," he said.

"Don't be," Logan said. "If it wasn't for that, we would have kept going with that bug in the bag."

"No, we found it after Sabretooth," Scott insisted. "Between the three of us, we had a handle on it. And I thought I was calling the Avengers. Not…." He gestured around the halls.

"Sabretooth was following the tracer," Logan pointed out. "That came from the department. If we'd stopped long enough, we'd have had a full unit coming in - and probably Creed too."

"Even after ditching the tracer?"

"Wouldn't have looked for it if Creed hadn't jumped her."

Scott looked frustrated. "That's what I'm saying," he insisted. "We dealt with him; we found the tracer. We didn't need the backup - if you can call getting shoved around and dragged off to a helicopter backup," he grumbled.

"Ditching Sabretooth ain't all that easy," Logan said. "He's good. He'd have found us and if we'd ticked him off enough, he'd have sent the department for kicks."

"In all fairness," Coulson said. "You would have gotten SHIELD anyhow. The Avengers were preoccupied at the time dealing with an attack on their headquarters. Which … is in large part why there is such a high level of paranoia operating here. And … why we're … here rather than there. The bulk of SHIELD is going through the details of that attack right now. Which is why it's so quiet and no one is paying close attention to such a low-level scan."

Coulson gave them that same tight smile before he tipped his head and stepped off into one of the rooms that had to be used as an office and Janet met them not two doors down with a grin.

"Is everything okay? Did you find her?" Janet asked, walking backwards to face the two of them. "I can show you to your room unless you want to wait for Jarvis." It was clear she was speaking to Scott, and it was only accentuated when Logan tipped his head up slightly and scented out the air before he turned quite suddenly, taking his own path.

Scott frowned after him for a moment before he turned back to Janet. "Yeah, we got to see her," he said, gesturing for her to lead the way. "Just waiting for them to finish talking to her. Thanks."

Janet smiled warmly at him before she beamed and took him by the arm to lead him off to the room.

Logan had, of course headed off to find Steve and find out what it was that he knew that no one wanted to say. He had his suspicions of course, most of them revolving around Fury and his interest in getting Logan to work for him. He had to wonder if he was the only one the director had approached, all things considered.

But Steve didn't have any solid answers for him, and he was resistant to even approach Fury on the subject. "If he doesn't know much about her, then she's probably better off," Steve admitted. "Especially after this attack we had in the city. He's going to be looking for someone that can go toe to toe with a Russian spy and some crazy archer.."

Logan frowned at him and shook his head. "You gotta quit makin' up stories, Cap."

It was almost twenty four hours since she'd woken up in captivity before anyone came to talk with K again. When Clay Quartermain knocked on the door and stepped in with a small stack of clothes for her, she only looked up at him without moving her head. She had moved very little since she'd woken up in the room, and she still didn't believe that this wasn't the Department. All things considered.

Of course, the lack of harsh treatment spoke to this being someone else, but it wouldn't be the first time that Canada had done something that seemed reasonable just to twist it into something awful.

"Go ahead and get changed and cleaned up," Quartermain said with an easy smile. "Don't worry - I won't watch or anything. I'm just here to take you to go see a couple people who have been giving my boys headaches all day insisting they won't go anywhere without you."

"That's not very comforting," K replied quietly, though she did unfold herself to take the clothes. "How long do I have?" She didn't wait for the answer to get started, moving quickly to at least change, sure that she didn't want to deal with more than that right that moment.

"Pretty sure it's not polite to rush a lady."

K stopped and turned his way for a moment before she pulled the shirt over her head, "I'm not sure that's something your type usually calls me," she said before she hurried through the rest of it. "But I do appreciate you allowing a little modesty. No telling on whoever's behind the mirror though, right?" She pulled her hair out of the back of the shirt she'd pulled on and then smoothed the fabric over her stomach. "Okay. Now what?" She gestured out with both hands. "Cuffs? Where's your back up?"

"You can get cleaned up," Quartermain said, gesturing her way. "Really. None of my boys're going to sneak a peek."

She frowned a little deeper at that. "If it's all the same to you, Mister Agent, I want to get out of this room."

"Fine by me; you're the one that has to sit in the sweat and smell like this room and I know for a fact the heating system smells like pickles."

"If you kept people out of the ventilation system you wouldn't have that problem," she replied.

"Yeah, I could, but then what would the green agents do with their time?" Quartermain chuckled as he opened the door. "Actually go on missions instead of getting rescued from the vents?"

"Im sure you can come up with something worthwhile. Send them for a board stretcher. Round doorstop …automatic hammer … always something."

Quartermain smirked at that as he led the way down the halls, though he didn't really comment on it until they were much closer to where the rest of the group was.

With no cuffs offered to her, she wasn't sure what to do with her hands and she quickly started hugging herself just to be able to show she wasn't a threat. For now. "Where are we?" K asked as they got closer to another set of double doors.

"Secure SHIELD facility," Quartermain said.

"SHIELD." She slowed, her heart racing as she started to look around them a bit more closely.

"Strategic Homeland Intervention and Enforcement Logistics Division."

"Yeah, I know what it stands for," she said. "I'm just not used to seeing them this … warm."

Quartermain smirked and paused at the door to offer her his hand. "Clay Quartermain," he said.

She glanced from his smile to the offered hand before she very carefully took his hand to shake, More than a little surprised to see that he was still being a gentleman. "A pleasure to meet you," she replied.

His smirk turned into a smile before he keyed in the code for the door and gestured for her to go ahead. "Go on - wouldn't be surprised if the kid tackled you the way he's been going on."

"Is this some … gauntlet thing I should be aware of?" she asked before she would step out of the door.

"If you consider hugs a gauntlet, sure. To each his own, I guess."

"Depends on who's giving them," she said before she held a breath and stepped out, clearly half expecting something awful to happen. "Thanks. I think," she called out as she started down the hallway slowly. She was obviously nervous - and she was almost afraid to blink and miss something as she very slowly went down the hall, her hands at her side as she strained her ears. But it wasn't long before she heard Scott talking in one of the rooms to her right, and after she looked the door over carefully, she pushed it open and stepped inside, where Scott was discussing … something or another with a bright eyed dark haired young woman.

But whatever the conversation was about, Scott completely abandoned it when he looked up and saw her and very quickly broke into a grin to rush over to her to give her a solid hug.

She let out a relieved breath as she returned the hug. "Hey, Caramel Mocha, I'm surprised you're here," she said.

"What, you didn't think I was going to leave you alone, did you?" he asked.

"Wouldn't be surprised if you had a chance to run," she replied.

He shook his head. "No way," he promised.

"Then I take it you're with these guys?" K asked when he finally let up on the hug a little bit.

He tipped his head toward the young woman he'd been talking to. "Sort of," he said. "I thought I was calling the Avengers. You know, like Wasp?" He gestured to Wasp as he said it.

K's eyebrows went up at that and she turned toward Janet, who was waving the tips of her fingers. "Right. New superhero team," K said, nodding. "Mazel tov."

"Are the clothes okay?" Janet asked, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "I did my best guessing your sizes and I really wanted you to look nice - OH! Before you get too far, I'm supposed to direct you to Tony's scanner. He's worried about bugs and tracers."

K shook her head at that. "If he wanted me scanned, it would have happened while I was out. Not happening now." Her tone was one of finality, and even as she shook her head, Janet tipped her head to the side.

"You know what … he probably did and is just being a pain," she agreed with a nod. "Or he just wanted to see how you'd react to it." Janet shook her head and waved it off quickly. "Anyhow. The guys are in the dining room. Plotting or planning or … whatever it is they like to do."

K frowned and turned toward Scott in a silent question before Janet blurted out who she meant. "Steve, Tony, and Logan. Of course. I'm just used to people coming in here knowing who they're dealing with. Even the uninvited ones."

"I'll take you down there," Scott offered, leading the way down the hall before he opened the door where the three men had their heads together, figuratively speaking, as they discussed what the latest intel suggested.

As soon as their presence was noted, all three men got to their feet and Scott began introducing them, though K was looking at Steve strangely - and moreso after he spoke, clearly putting things together before Scott finished his introduction. She shook his hand, and kept her thoughts to herself until her attention was drawn by Tony.

"Well," Tony said as he took her hand and smirked to himself. "Scotty didn't do you justice. I suppose I should have known something was off when you managed to recruit Coulson onto your side too."

K let out a little breath and relaxed on hearing that. "Phil's a lot smarter than he likes to let on."

Tony smiled a little wider as he pulled on her hand to get her to go along with him to his side of the table, then pulled a chair out next to him with his free hand. "He plays it pretty close to the vest," Tony said as soon as they'd both sat down, resting his chin in his hand and leaning toward her. "Never know what that guy is up to. How … exactly do you know him?"

"Professionally." K gave him a little smile and shifted in her chair to face him better. "So when do we get a move on? I'd like to get away from whatever this place is." She looked over to Logan, waiting to see if he had some kind of an opinion, though he looked like he was wrapped up talking to Steve.

"Temporarily or more long term?" Tony asked.

"That's up to Scott and Logan, I think," she replied. "If I'm still travelling with them."

"Of course you are," Scott said with a little frown. "If you still want to."

"Temporary reprieve then," Tony said quickly. "Couple hours away from the base."

"Hold that thought," K said slowly, watching Tony grin before she turned back to Scott. "Of course I want to stick with you if you two want me around. I just have no idea where to go at this point."

"You have plenty of time to figure that out," Steve said suddenly, cutting in before Tony split his face in half grinning. "We've still got intel pouring in, and to ease your mind, miss, you're not in any of the chatter."

She glanced between the gathered men and visibly relaxed into her chair. "Small miracles."

"But - that also means that you'd be a serious help in keeping us hidden," Scott pointed out to her. "Since they're looking for a father-son pair."

She turned his way with a fond smile and entirely missed the look that Tony gave him. "That sounds great to me," K agreed. "As soon as we get a destination."

Scott gestured to Logan. "I'll leave that up to you two. I don't really have a preference."

Logan looked up at him and then toward K and Tony. "Hate to admit it, darlin', but we need more intel first."

"You'd be smart to stay for a week anyhow," Steve agreed. "But I'm sure Jarvis can make sure you're all close, room-wise."

"Maybe not too close," Tony said with a troublemaking smile, though Scott tried to put an end to the flirting fast.

"As long as Janet picks the clothes," Scott said half under his breath.

"She's pretty close with the sizes," K said softly, turning his way. "Legs were a little long … but that's hard to avoid when you're as short as I am."

For the time being, the conversation stuck between Scott and K while Steve and Logan had their own chat. Tony could have joined in with the two men at any time - but instead, he turned to listen to what Scott had to say about the clothes, shadowing K next to her as he tried to rile Scott.

"What was wrong with what I picked? Really," Tony asked with a smirk. "Looked good on you."

"I looked like a weird adult's version of what he thinks teenagers should dress like," Scott said without turning his way as he leaned over to K. "I couldn't find anything that didn't look like a mid-life crisis."

K grinned broadly at him and couldn't help but chuckle. "Then I'm going to formally request right now that only Janet brings me things to wear."

"That's what I was warning you about," Scott agreed with a nod.

"I have a feeling it might be worse though," she said before she couldn't help but shoot a grin Tony's way. "No offense, but I doubt your midlife crisis would look the same on me. Little bit different thoughts on what I should wear, I'm sure."

"Hey. Let's get something straight right now, I am not that old," Tony said, sounding almost serious.

"My point still stands," K argued before she pushed her chair back, nearly bumping into Tony as she got up. "Come on, Caramel Mocha. You can show me around. Where I need to avoid to keep away from lasers, all that nonsense."

She put her arm around Scott's shoulders and let him lead the way out, which really was the perfect cue for Steve to rebound a wadded up piece of paper off of Tony's head. "Hey. We have things we need to focus on here …"

"I absolutely agree," Tony said before slowly turning back to the two men. "It's just the subject matter we're disagreeing on."