Y'all, I am so sorry this has taken so long. I am struggling with writer's block and I am sure that it is because I am stressed about starting my next semester of school. I picked a difficult profession to take on. I will try to update more soon but no promises. Please have patience with me, I really am trying.
As always, please review :)
A week ago, Kate probably would have blushed to be in the position she was in, lying half on her back, her other side pressed to the sofa and Peter flush against her. However, considering she had almost gotten taken out, most likely by her homicidal oldest brother, Kate's whole body tensed, blood was pounding in her ears as she looked to where they had been standing just moments ago, position forgotten.
Taking one look at Peter's face she saw he was disoriented from the explosion. "Peter, focus." She called gripping his arm. "They're here!" He blinked and shook his head. "Peter, we have to move!"
That seemed to grab his attention and he moved off her.
"Stay low!" She ordered before he could get up too far.
FRIDAY activated the alarm for the others as she thought of a plan. They needed to just get around the bend in the room to the elevator, they would be out of sight from any sniper. She pointed the direction out to him.
"We gotta make a break for it." She said mind going to her bow several floors beneath them. "We need to get downstairs."
The teens shot to their feet and raced for it. Peter grabbed her at one point, stopping her dead so a bullet, not an arrow, passed in front of them and kept moving. They made it to the elevators just as the power cut out and the building went dark.
"Shit." She muttered as emergency lights came on. "Looks like we're taking the stairs. Stay on guard they're gonna try and funnel us in there."
Peter nodded.
They stepped into the stairwell. Looking down was a bad idea. The squared off staircase circling down was enough to make someone dizzy.
"How many floors do we have to go?" He asked.
"Nine." She replied.
The move down started easy but then Kate saw it. The first sign of black gear that she didn't recognize. She motioned for Peter to move back from the railing and stay closer to the wall. They still had five more floors to go.
"Get ready." She breathed out knowing he would hear her. They paused on the stairs and waited.
The first group had five, all wearing ballistics gear, each carrying semi-automatic rifles; when they came into sight Peter used his webs like a slingshot to launch himself across the gap in the stairs and take out the one in the middle forcing two back and two forward.
Kate grabbed one of the rifles aimed at Peter's back, yanking it down and then forcing it back so the butt of the rifle hit the owner in the nose, breaking it and sending him staggering back. She instantly raised the gun and shot the second one on her side of the stairs in the chest knowing the vest would take the shot, but it would stun him. She looked up to see Peter take out the last two and they made quick work of webbing them to the walls.
"I'll take these." She said taking their comms and dropping most down the stairwell but keeping one. "Let's go."
Hearing more footsteps in the stairwell, they decided to just take the quick route down. Wrapping one around around her waist as she put an arm around his shoulders, gripping her new rifle in her other hand, Peter pulled her close and they jumped over the side repelling down on a web quickly. If she hadn't been so focused on the hostiles coming up fast, Kate would have been thrilled by the rush of dropping down.
"Our stop." She called out and Peter swung them, kicking off the railing and bringing them right to the door. She looked at him more than a little impressed. "Good timing."
They exited onto the main training floor and Kate led him to where they kept the weapons.
"Whoa." Peter commenter, eyes of his suit going a little wide as he looked around.
Kate strapped her quiver into place and grabbed a few extra things before picking up her bow. She turned to Peter and opened her mouth to speak but froze hearing someone coming. She notched an arrow and aimed for the doorway and waited, Peter moving out of her eye-line but staying close.
Spotting shadows in the doorway, she drew her bow just a little tighter. She caught sight of a flash of metal and paused in relief as Bucky and Steve came around the corner.
"Oh my god." She muttered as they stopped seeing the teens. She lowered her bow and returned the arrow to her quiver.
"Are you two alright?" Steve asked
"Yeah." Peter said.
Bucky looked at Kate. "Is it just the two of you down here?"
"Yeah." She said. "I'm not sure where Tony or Clint are but they weren't upstairs with us. What about the others?"
"Unclear." Bucky said.
Rhodey, Wanda and Vision were on a critical mission as of two hours ago that couldn't wait so they already lost some of their heaviest hitters, Thor would be harder to contain but it could be done. Natasha still hadn't been able to return from her mission and Sam separated off by himself was in danger. Bruce would most likely be in the lab which would have sealed off so hopefully he was okay.
"Clint might be in the comm room." She said thoughtfully. "Tony might be near the lab if he isn't there already."
"We'll find them." Steve said.
Kate chewed on her lower lip. "We might have another problem." She said.
Both soldiers looked at her.
"I haven't heard FRIDAY since the power went out." She said. "If they fried the system somehow…we need to get FRIDAY back online if we want to stay ahead of them."
Bucky looked at Steve for a second. Steve did not look happy at all.
"Can you get FRIDAY back online?" Steve asked her.
"Probably, but not without Tony." She admitted. "I can fix what they broke but Tony is the only one who can override it and get FRIDAY started again."
Bucky furrowed his brow. "We can split up." He suggested looking at Steve, though he didn't seem particularly happy about the prospect. "You take the spider kid with you to get Stark and tell him what's going on and I'll take Kate to the servers and she can get started."
"You should stop and get Clint first." Steve said. "We don't know how many are here."
Kate shook her head. "They'll be looking for Clint and I to be in the same place." She said. "If you guys can get to him it'll give us time to try and get FRIDAY back online."
It was reluctant but Steve agreed for them to split up. The two soldiers got what they needed while Kate and Peter stood together as they waited, keeping watch for anyone coming.
"Kate." Peter said quietly. "If you're wrong and they're waiting for you…"
"It'll be okay." She said gently resting a hand against his chest, feeling his heartbeat against palm. His hand came up to cover hers "Just find Tony, find my brother and let's get these guys."
"Kate, lets go." Bucky called suddenly.
Kate pulled her hand away and moved to join the Winter Soldier. She handed over Clint's bow and quiver to Steve. She offered one last look over her shoulder before they headed out the door.
…
Peter followed Steve up five floors to one of the residential levels. Walking out, both were tense; they hadn't encountered a single hostile in the stairwell and that was unsettling.
As they paused their heightened hearing picked up the sounds of growling followed by someone swearing.
Lucky.
Racing down the hall, Steve went through the door to the apartment with Peter right behind him. They entered in time to see Lucky launch forward and grab one hostile's boot, yanking his foot out from under him while Clint incapacitated two before turning a gun on the one Lucky had down.
"You okay?" Steve asked.
Clint nodded, expression grim, grey eyes like steel as they stared at the enemy combatants.
Peter looked from him to Lucky, who was still snarling and snapping at the man on the ground, muzzle stained with blood. The cute fluff ball really did have a bite.
"Lucky, back." Clint ordered.
The dog stepped back as Clint moved forward, his eyes never once leaving the man on the ground.
Clint knelt down drawing a knife similar to the one Peter saw Kate handling a few times.
"Peter, wait outside." Steve said grimly.
Something in the tone of his voice made Peter not argue as he moved back towards the hallway.
"That won't be necessary." The man on the ground spoke in a surprising French accent. "Trickshot wants a word with you." As he spoke the man pulled out a short-range radio like the one Kate had pulled off one of the men in the stairwell earlier.
"Chisholm." Clint said into the radio.
"Not quite little brother." A voice replied. Clint's jaw clenched and Lucky snapped at the voice. "You still have that mutt…" There was clear disdain in the man's voice before he got back on track. "This can end simply, just give me what I want, and we'll go."
"We don't have your goddamn list." Clint growled out.
"I believe you." The man replied. "But at this point what's the list when our baby sister can be so much more useful?"
Clint and Steve froze; Peter felt his blood run cold.
…
Kate and Bucky paused as they listened to the conversation over her confiscated radio. She knew that Bucky was staring at her, but she couldn't look up and meet his gaze. This was Clint's greatest fear that they would forgo the list and just focus on her, but they also prepared for this.
"We need to keep moving." Bucky said.
She nodded and put the radio away as they moved down the hall. They were almost to the server room but even from the distance they were at in the hallway, they could hear multiple voices.
Calmly, she drew four arrows, notching one. She nodded to Bucky as they reached the door.
He went through first, taking out two with his rifle. She came through the door and instinct took over as she took in the sight of at least a dozen men still on their feet. She fired once, twice, kicking a chair into one guy's legs she fired two arrows at once taking out three, one of her arrows going straight through to get the one behind him.
She didn't have time to marvel at the lucky shot that was as she converted her bow to a staff and knocked out the guy she had tripped up with the chair. Looking over, she saw Bucky, who had incapacitated his opponents, watching her with an expression somewhere between analytical and impressed.
"What?" She asked with a smile.
He just shook his head a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. However, his eyes seemed troubled.
Kate ran over to the computers in the room pushing aside the body that was in the chair while Bucky stood at close as a silent sentinel, watching her back as she worked.
"So, you and the spider kid looked pretty cozy upstairs." Bucky commented after a minute making her falter on her keystrokes. "Is there something going on?"
"Don't we have more important things to worry about right now?" Kate asked as she brought up the communications system on the monitor, trying to get connected with the lab in hopes that Tony is there.
Bucky shrugged; thought he was smiling now at the obvious blush on her face. "The two of you were obviously alone before the attack began…"
"Drop it." She replied, her mind immediately going back to the kiss.
Bucky went back to silence and she focused on the connection, she was so close to getting it working.
"Did he kiss you?"
"Jesus!" Kate cried in frustration to which Bucky outright laughed at. However, she couldn't maintain her frustration hearing the normally silent and brooding soldier actually laugh. She smiled and shook her head with fondness.
After a bit more work the connection went through and she could see the lab on the monitor. "Yes!" She said and quickly keyed the mic. "Hello? Tony? Bruce? Can anyone hear me?"
"Kate." A familiar voice replied.
"Tony, thank god it's you." She said as he appeared on the screen.
The billionaire looked so relieved to see her. "Are you okay? Where is Peter? Is he with you?" He asked.
Kate gave him a quick rundown of the plan. "I need your help. I'm trying to fix FRIDAY."
Tony glanced past her at the room. "Okay, tell me what you see, and I'll walk you through what to do." He said not even stopping to question it.
Before they could begin, a commotion started outside the room causing Kate and Bucky to look up. Bucky raised his rifle and Kate slowly drew an arrow from the quiver.
"What's going on?" Tony asked concern lacing his voice.
Kate couldn't reply as she stared at the door, hearing cries of pain and shouts and gunfire. As the noise died, they raised their weapons, waiting for whatever was coming through the door next.
The door handle turned, and Kate raised her bow, the string pulled back taut as she watched the door swing open. However, seeing the new arrival made her freeze.
Relaxing the drawstring and lowering the weapon as Bucky did, Kate stared with wide eyes. "Oh my god." She whispered.