A/N: Yay new chapter. This is the one that opens the door to where this story needs to go too. Technically speaking, we are kind of at the halfway point here? I'm breaking this up into separate "books" and the first leg of this journey is nearly halfway through. Nice. Again, please leave me rambly comments/reviews so I can read over them and happy cry thanks!


Chapter 17:

Lots of Whiskey, and An Equal Amount of Blood


"I used to be afraid of the dark

Until I came to realize that

There are monsters

hidden away

Beneath a smile as beautiful as

the first morning rays

Only those are twice as dangerous

For they hide in plain sight

Because, unlike the ones

in your closet,

They aren't afraid of the light." –s.s.w


"This guy says he's done PR for the Black Eyed Peas!" Peter said with wide eyes. He held the printed application up for me to see. In the past two weeks, I had managed to narrow down hundreds of applications into a final five. Their background checks had just come back clean which meant I was going to have to interview them now.

I squinted to look at the application and shook my head, "I'm not sure if that's a pro or con."

Peter shrugged and picked up a different application to look over. Tony had offered the kid after school lab space and he jumped on the chance. Now, every couple of days, he'd swing by to do science things. Today was one of those days, but the experiments or whatever it was they did, had gotten postponed for a mission.

"What kind of mission are they going on?" Peter asked.

"Steve said something about, like, knocking a HYDRA base off the map or—wait." I looked up from the work I was doing. "Are you supposed to know that? That might be confidential."

Peter raised an eyebrow, "Are you allowed to know that?"

"Touché, kid." I mumbled and went back to making notes on the applications. A few minutes passed and I heard Peter chuckling from across the table. I glanced up, expecting him to have found something funny in one of the applications, but instead he was looking at his phone. Peter began to type out a message with a grin on his face. I smirked, "Texting your girlfriend, Petey?"

Peter's eyes widened and rose to meet mine, a bright pink blush on his face, "W—What? No, no, no! She's not my girlfrie—I mean, I don't have a girlfriend."

"Aw", I rested my elbow on the table and grinned at him, "Do you have a crush?"

He shook his head rapidly, "No way, my only crush is my crushing anxiety."

Leaving my head against my hand, I tilted it slightly with concern, "You good, Pete? I have a therapist on speed dial. It's Sam, but he's decent."

Peter chuckled and gave me a comforting thumbs up. I shook my head and looked away. I found his quirky sense of humor to be hilarious, but I knew Tony was one joke away from actually getting the kid a non-Sam therapist. We worked in silence for the next few minutes. Peter had pulled out his books to work on some homework and I read over applicant #3. She was my favorite so far. Not much experience, but a good education. I wouldn't judge anyone based on their lack of experience. I mean, look at my ass.

A loud roaring sound, similar to a gushing waterfall, made me jump and whip around. Luckily, it was just Thor arriving. The colorful lights disappeared, and he walked away from his dedicated spot on the deck to step into the penthouse. That was the first time I saw and heard his arrival.

"Hey, Thor." I stood up to greet him.

"Ah, Aj. How have you been?" Thor opened his arms wide and I chuckled before stepping over to give him a quick hug. He wore his Asgardian clothes. The fancy silver and dark gray armor with its bright red cape. Thor motioned to Peter with his hammer, "And Peter Parker! It's good to see you again, small boy."

Peter raised his hand in greeting, "Uh, thanks, Mr. Thor?"

"The others?" Thor clapped his hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah, I'll walk you down. With you here they should be ready to go." I replied, then glanced to Peter, "I'll be right back, ok?"

Peter gave me a nod and then Thor and I crossed the room to the same elevator that would lead up to the medical lab. It was also the elevator that lead down into the Avenger's locker room. Tony had used a fancier label with words like 'Tactical Gear', 'Weapons Vault', and 'Uniform Storage', but it was a glorified, high-tech locker room. It's where they would change into their gear before whisking off to save the world. I had only gotten acquainted with it in the last two weeks.

"How's Asgard?" I asked hitting the down button.

Thor gave me a grin, "Asgard is well. I think you'd enjoy it immensely, Aj."

I chuckled, "I'm sure you're not wrong, but I left the country for the first time three-ish months ago and that was a train wreck. I think I'm gonna hold off on leaving the planet for at least a little while."

Thor laughed along with me, his laughter as usual sounding like sunshine, and I tried not to be in awe. For the most part, I had gotten used to the other Avengers. They've been humanized. It was hard to think of Tony as Iron Man when I've watched him spill his coffee then mop it up with his shirt to avoid leaving the lab, or Clint as the incredible Hawkeye when I've seen his ass fall out of a A/C vent on three sperate occasions. They were just people to me now. Thor, on the other hand, was still very much hard to humanize. He was such a chill guy, but my brain just wouldn't stop screaming 'god of thunder' at me.

The elevator doors opened, and we stepped out. The locker room was spacious, and each Avenger had their own locker for their gear. The lockers weren't high school sized though. They were giant closets, big enough to hold all the shit they had. Uniforms, weapons, cute little knick-knacks, etc.

"Nice of you to finally join us, Point Break." Tony called out. Besides Bruce, he was the only one still wearing normal clothes. Clint was lying on a bench in his gear spinning an arrow between his fingers. Natasha and Steve were out of view.

I pointed to Tony, "Do you always wear your AC/DC shirt on super-secret HYDRA base busting missions?" Clint raised an eyebrow at me, and I shook my head, "Ones that I know absolutely nothing about."

"Wasn't me with the big mouth this time." Tony replied then pointed back at me, "And I'll have you know sometimes I wear my Black Sabbath one."

Clint mumbled something that I didn't catch, but Thor did. He chuckled and set his hammer on top of the archer's chest. Clint barked out a curse and tried to get up only to flail about in annoyance.

"Oh, come on, Thor!" Clint groaned.

"Is Thor finally here?" I heard Steve ask.

A second later he stepped into view from wherever he had been prepping for the mission. Steve was decked out in his Captain America uniform in all its red, white, and blue glory. His tight ass t-shirts left nothing to the imagination, but this uniform was something special. It hugged his form leaving him looking badass and hot. I knew Steve was handsome, everyone on planet Earth knew that, but this was the first time my brain was using the word 'hot' to describe him.

"God bless America." I said, dragging my eyes back up to meet Steve's. His eyes widened a bit, his cheeks flushing briefly, and then his lips curled up in a smile. Tony wolf whistled loudly, and now it was my turn to blush bright red. Thor was grinning at me and Clint, who was still stuck on the bench with an alien hammer on his chest, grinned at me as well. "Oh, uh—"

Tony stepped into my view, blocking Steve from it, he waved his hands in front of my face, "Hey, no objectifying the elderly. Aren't you supposed to be babysitting?"

"Peter is 15. He doesn't need a babysitter." I leaned to the side to peek around Tony, catching Steve's smile, only for Tony to get back in my face. I rolled my eyes, "Aren't you supposed to be flying to a HYDRA base to beat the shit out of them?"

"Yes, we are." Natasha leaned against the wall over by where Steve was, "You boys ready or do you need more time to curl your hair?"

Tony yanked me into a tight hug, called out a good-bye, then tried to push me to the elevator. I ducked under his arm with a shake of my head so I could say real good-byes. This was the first time I was watching the team load up and fly away. I was positive they would be fine because they were amazing and supersuperheroes, but there was always that lingering doubt.

"Y'all will be careful right?" I twisted my lips.

"Have no fear. I will bring them back in one piece." Thor reassured me. "It is my responsibility as the strongest avenger."

"Not the strongest." Clint echoed.

"I make no promises about Barton."

I chuckled, Thor picked up his hammer, and Clint rolled to his feet with arms outstretched. I shook my head and gave him a hug, then moved on to hug Bruce, and Natasha too. Wishing each of them good luck. When I got to Steve, I felt my face heat up again. Having thoughts like that about your friend was one thing, voicing said thoughts aloud in front of all the rest of your friends was another. If only the ground would open up and swallow me whole.

"So, uh, good luck, Captain Rogers." I reached forward and punched his arm lightly, "Make those HYDRA assholes cry or whatever."

Steve chuckled, "What? I don't get a hug because you embarrassed yourself?"

"Keep sassing me. See if you ever get a hug again." I replied without missing a beat. He shook his head and pulled me into a hug that I returned happily. Worry washed over me again and my arms tightened around him. "Be careful. Bring them all back, ok?"

"I will, Aj. Don't worry." Steve replied and pulled away. He turned and took a step back to head to where the rest of the team had gone, to the quinjet, but then he stopped and glanced over his shoulder. "I could wear this to our next Netflix—"

"Bye, Steve!" I said loudly.

Steve laughed again and walked out of the locker room out to where the quinjet was waiting for him. I shook my head and moved back to the elevator so I could get to the penthouse. "God bless America, I actually said God bless America." I mumbled to myself. Honestly, I wasn't quite sure why I still let myself talk.


They were making good time. The HYDRA base they were tackling first was technically the one closest to them. It was in a rural area in Spain. Had been, at least. After a three-hour flight there, it only took them twenty-five minutes to bring the entire base to its knees. The bad news was that it was a smaller base and Von Strucker hadn't set his main operations there. Steve knew they weren't lucky enough to get him on the first attack though.

"South exit clear." Steve said into his earpiece.

"Copy that, Captain Handsome." Tony called back.

Steve wanted to be annoyed at the new nickname, roll his eyes and hit him back with a quip, but instead all he could do was smirk. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't still thinking of the look on Aj's face when she saw him for the first time in uniform. Steve would also be lying if he said he didn't like it.

Clint suddenly poked his head out the door that was to Steve's left. The archer, who had managed to bruise the eye that had just healed, motioned to him, "Hey, do you wanna join us in here looking for clues on that piece of shit scepter Loki had or do you need another minute out here to daydream about Aj? Just trying to gauge how our day is going."

"Don't you have something useful to do?" Steve scoffed, his smile still not faltering.

Clint shook his head with a shrug, "Not usually, no."

Steve clipped his shield to his back and slipped out of his helmet. The base was carved into the side of a mountain, hidden by the forest surrounding it, but due to the location it limited the growth HYRDA could do here. Coulson was in the process of sending in a team of agents to collect the HYRDA scum that had surrendered and were now cuffed and placed aside with Natasha looking over them.

"Thor, have you found anything?" Steve questioned.

Rather than answering over the comm unit, Thor breezed into the room with a frown, "I have not. Loki's scepter is not here."

"We'll find the scepter when we find Von Strucker. You know the two will be together." Bruce said while trying to pull files from the HYDRA database onto their own. A code green had been avoided and that left the man in a good mood. "He probably sleeps with it at night."

Tony, who stood beside him looking over his shoulder with his face mask flipped up, shook his head, "From everything I'm seeing, there aren't any clues either. A few files on enhancement experiments that we're unfortunately gonna have to dig through."

"Nat?" Steve said.

The red head glanced over her shoulder with a small shake of her head, "They say they don't know anything, and they aren't lying. They're too low level to have any real information for us."

"Cool, this trip was fun." Tony clapped his hands. "Can we go?"

"Not until the team Coulson dispatched gets here."

Tony groaned and went back to reading over Bruce's shoulders. Thor came over to stand beside Steve with a frown on his face. He let out a sharp sigh, "That scepter in the hands of my brother was one thing. He wanted power through the control of others—"

"Yeah, in case I haven't said it recent enough, fuck your brother, Thor." Clint barked out. Understandably, he still hated Loki more than any other person on Earth.

Thor glanced over at him with a sad nod before turning back to Steve, "This Von Strucker, from what I have seen and heard…the evil he can accomplish will be unfathomable."

"The list Coulson and his team got for us has every HYDRA base in Europe. We'll find him."

"What's to stop him from running?" Natasha asked. "He has to know we have those locations. Especially when we start picking them off the map one by one."

Steve nodded, "That is a risk, but from what I've seen…men like Von Strucker are arrogant. They think they're untouchable. My bet is, he won't move from his base. Not until he accomplishes his goal."

"So, we just have to beat him to it." Clint spun in the spinning chair he was seated in.

"Fuck!" Tony snapped. Every person in the room swiveled around to face him and whatever danger that had startled him. Instead, all they saw was anger, and quite frankly fear, in his brown eyes. Before anyone could ask him what was wrong, Tony barked again, "JARVIS, project screen."

A holographic screen was projected onto the wall and all eyes snapped to it. It was the local News Channel from back home. The reporter was frantically speaking while the words 'Breaking News' flashed red on the screen. Beyond the reporter though, a shaky video showed an unfamiliar man with a cruel and excited smirk pasted on his face. In one hand he held a pistol and in the other he had his arm locked around Aj's neck while her nails dug into his skin.

"—we're still on scene at Avengers Tower where a woman who we have identified as Aimee Jane Bradshaw, a close confidant of the Avengers and Tony Stark's previous PA, has been taken hostage by an unidentified man. Police have arrived—"

For the first time since they left New York, Steve's smile fell.


This was the first time I had been alone in the Tower. Up until now, at least one of the Avengers had been around. It was an odd feeling. Peter had stuck around for another hour to hang out with me, but then he had to run off for some club meeting. I don't know what kind of school club met on a Saturday, but the kid did go to a crazy, smart person school. Who knew what they did? Playing with the applications had only kept me busy for so long.

"The team has reached the base and their communications to the Tower have gone dark until the mission ends, Ms. Bradshaw." JARVIS chimed above me.

"Thanks, J." I replied and continued to online shop on my phone. Christmas was coming up and for the first time in years, I had people to buy gifts for. I also had money to buy gifts which was cool too. Unfortunately, the Avengers had a rule for Christmas. Gifts could be given to one another, but the gift had to be handmade or be under $20. Apparently, the rule was formed because the first year they spent Christmas together, Tony bought them insane and absorbent gifts. The good news of this rule was that Tony couldn't actually buy me a Jeep.

I bought Granny a few warmer sweaters, perfume, and a necklace I knew she'd like. That was the easy gift. I'd probably spend the remaining two weeks before Christmas desperately trying to think of something until the very last minute.

After ten minutes of staring at the ceiling, coming up with nothing, I rolled off the couch and moved toward the elevator. It was only four in the afternoon which meant Sal would still be downstairs serving coffee. The only day he took off was Sunday.

The lobby downstairs was still pretty active for a Saturday. The workers at Stark Industries were busy bodies. Despite being a personal assistant for Tony Stark for two plus months, I still actually didn't know what all these people did. I knew what Tony did. Sort of. I nodded to a few familiar faces before saddling up to Sal's counter. He peeked his head up from a cabinet he was rooting through, "Little bird! I didn't think I'd see you today."

"I missed you too much, Sal." I replied back. He was the only person working right now. Sal was the kind of guy who gave his employees the entire weekend off. Always said he could manage the stand himself on Saturday. "What do I want today?"

Sal hummed, "With the recent snowfall, I think you want my special hot chocolate with extra whipped cream and a little of my secret ingredient."

"Secret ingredient?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"If I tell you my secret ingredient I'll be out of business." Sal scoffed and began to make the drink. I felt a chill run down my spine and tightened Bucky's jacket around myself. Warily, I turned around and let my eyes glance over the room. Everything seemed normal and in place. The chill was probably just from the cold. That was all. "You doing ok today, Aj?"

I smiled and turned back around to face Sal. He brought over the drink and set it in front of me, "I'm good, Sal. Thanks so much." I picked up the drink and took a sip only to flinch in surprise and set it down with a cough, "The secret ingredient is whiskey. Lots of whiskey."

"Hmm, sounds good. I think I'll take one of those." A deep voice from behind me said. I took a step to the side and glanced over my shoulder. I hadn't felt him sneak up on me. That was unusual for me.

Sal chirped that he was working on it and I let my eyes drag over the stranger's features. He didn't look familiar to me at all. Rugged, handsome features, a square jaw covered in black and gray scruff that matched the color of his thick, slicked back hair. He gave me a friendly grin, but the warmth of the smile didn't match the coldness in his dark brown eyes.

"How're you doing?" He asked again. He was taller than me, by a decent bit, and was decked out in black jeans, a black leather jacket, and matching black scarf. I mumbled a friendly reply and turned to leave. "Oh, hang on, Aj. I wanted to talk to you for a minute."

That same chill ran down my spine at him using my name.

I turned and leveled a glare at him, "Who the hell are you?"

"I was your executioner, but I don't know if I could kill a face that pretty." He chuckled. Sal came back with the drink and noticed the tenseness around us. He opened his mouth to speak, but the man pulled a gun out of his leather jacket pocket and rested it on the counter facing Sal. "Neither of you make a sound and this might have a happy ending."

Sal swallowed a lump in his throat, and I could see him shaking. I tried to shoot him a reassuring look, but it did nothing. Instead, I settled on glaring at the man in front of us. I spoke between clenched teeth, "Get that damn thing away from him. Now."

"Wow." He chuckled again. "Look at that anger. My baby brother was right. You got a temper on you, little girl."

My eyes widened, "Baby brother?" Suddenly, the rumors of Boss having a big brother partying it up out in Vegas came to the forefront of my mind. That's all I thought it was though. Just rumors. They didn't even look like each other, "I didn't think Boss had—"

"Oh, yeah. That spineless little dick is my half-brother. Mama always did like his weaselly ass best, but hey", He winked at me, "At least I got the looks."

"What the fuck do you want?" I snapped.

"Hey, hey, now." He shook his head and motioned toward Sal with the gun, "We're still in the small talk portion of this hold-up, Small Fry."

"Don't fucking call me that." I growled. "And get that damn gun off—"

He shook his head and ignored me, "My name is Vincent Morgan. They call me the Reaper back home and—"

"I don't give a shit what they call you." I said firmly. "Take your gun off Sal right now."

Vincent Morgan smirked, a cruel fire in his eyes, "Hot damn. Eugene was always bitching about you. I didn't get why he was so obsessed with some little fighter in his dirty as shit ring, but wow…I get it now. The balls on you."

He was shaking the gun again, and I felt my heart race. My anger quickly turned to desperation, "This is between me and you. Sal has nothing to do with this. Point that gun at me. Please."

"Hmmm." Vincent grinned at me, "Good idea."

He pulled the trigger and the drink fell out of my hand. Sal let out a cry of pain and collapsed to the floor. Gasping, I cried out and tried to jump over the counter as people in the lobby screamed. Before I could crawl over and get to the moaning Sal though, an arm wrapped tightly around my throat and I felt the muzzle of his gun press against my temple.

"Sal!" I screamed as Vincent dragged me away from the counter. I struggled against his grip desperately, but it did nothing. "You sick son of a bitch! He didn't do anything!"

Vincent pressed his lips against my ear and chuckled, his deep voice leeching into my brain and hot breath tickling me, "I know. I just like making a scene." It was only then, while he dragged me away from the coffee stand, that I noticed there were other men scattered around the room with their own guns. It was why security couldn't make a move. "Now unless you want me to make a bigger scene, we need to go."

I dug my nails into his arm, but the leather jacket made it useless, "You're a dumbass. What kind of idiot breaks into Avengers Tower and takes hostages?"

"Oh, I did my research." Vincent hummed. "And I know the Avengers left you home alone while they party it up in Spain."

How did he know that? I didn't even know they'd be going to Spain specifically. It could've just been a wild guess on his part, but he sounded too confident for that to be it. I took in a shaky breath, "What the hell do you want?"

"I lied to you." Vincent shook his head, "I hope you don't hold that against me. See, Eugene asked me to kill you and I was gonna, that part was true, but the reason I decided not to wasn't just because of that pretty little smile. Although, it did help."

I could hear sirens outside and one of his masked goons was at the front door trying to leave, but it was locked up. Score one for JARVIS. I chuckled, "Looks like you're stuck inside, Reaper."

Vincent growled in my ear in annoyance before dragging me over to the front of the lobby. From here, I could see police arriving and there were already news trucks parked along the side with various reporters. Cool. The media vultures got here before the cops did.

"Did you contact them?" Vincent squeezed on my throat.

"Does it—" I gasped and tried to pull his arm away to suck in air, "Does it look like I fucking called anyone!?"

Vincent let out a whistle and then began to drag me across the lobby again. I tried to use my feet to trip him up, but he just pulled me higher and that made it that much harder to breathe. I knew how to get out of this hold, but with the gun at my temple it complicated things. What if he shot me? That'd leave me either dead or unable to fight. Worse than that, what if he shot someone else? I tried not to think about Sal as Vincent pulled me toward down a hallway to where the back door was. How did he know this building so well?

A few of his goons followed us, but just like the front the back door was locked too.

"Shoot it." Vincent barked and his goons opened fire at the glass entrance. Tony had built his Tower well. All the glass was bullet proof, and his bullet proof glass was even stronger than I expected. Still, it could only withstand so much. After multiple rounds from the three goons with him, it cracked enough for them to shove through.

"Let me go." I yelled and tried to fight him as he dragged me through the shattered glass. There were no police at the back yet, but I was hopeful they'd be here soon. "You aren't getting away with this!"

"Oh, but I am." Vincent chuckled. He pulled the gun away from my temple to reach back in his coat pocket. I wondered what he was doing, but the thought was short lived when an explosion shook the ground and filled the air with noise and fire. The explosion hadn't been in the building, thank God, but it was nearby. "That's to keep the pigs busy. Now let's go, our car is parked on the curb, doll."

That was it.

That was my breaking point.

"Don't fucking call me that." I snapped and let go of his arm to activate my gloves. Then I took a quick step forward, and pushed my other foot between his legs, then used my momentum to shove my shoulder into the opening and roll out of his grip. Vincent tried to tighten around me, but now I was facing him with my face pressed into his chest. I slammed my left hand into his side and activated the repulsor. With a loud whine, it went off in a flash of bright light. My ears were left ringing, but Vincent let out a loud cry of pain as he went flying backwards landing in a crumpled, moaning pile.

One nearby goon lifted his gun to fire, but another stopped him. Instead they all lunged at me. I sucked in a breath and focused on keeping them in front of me as I dodged their attacks. Like Tony had said, the pulse was a one hit wonder. The glove's repulsor was dark and the metal felt heavier for some reason.

I slammed my right fist into a goon's face and he immediately collapsed. The perks of a metal glove. Behind me, I could hear more goons walking through the broken glass. Rather than fight the next guy in front of me, I ducked under his arm and started running. They were after me. The further I got away from the Tower and other innocents the better. I cleared the henchmen, but a hand wrapped around my ankle and I hit the ground hard.

"You dumb bitch." Vincent growled, his hand still tightly wrapped around my ankle, "I was trying to play nice!"

I tried to kick him in the face with my other foot, but he caught it and lunged forward so most of his heavy body was on top of mine. The panic and adrenaline made my breaths come in quick as I tried to rock him off me to no avail. Vincent grabbed my throat, his body between my legs, and began to squeeze. Natasha's voice barked in my head.

Calm down. Focus.

Black spots began to fill my visions, but I forced myself to take a moment and gather my bearings. Vincent's grin widened. I grabbed his left forearm with my right hand, then shoved my left hand against his right shoulder. Vincent chuckled, but his amusement died when I set my foot against his left hip and shoved with every ounce of power I had. The moment his body slipped down I used my right leg to wrap around his neck quickly followed by the left.

Vincent let out a grunt. He was on the ground now, his arm caught between my legs and my grip. I lifted my hips and yanked down on his arm hard. The sound of his elbow snapping and him screaming was honestly music to my fucking ears.

My small moment of victory was cut short when the butt of a rifle slammed into my face. Pain and shock washed over me and my grip on Vincent fell loose as I clutched at my face. Don't pass out. Don't pass out. Don't pass out. Someone kicked me hard in the side and I gasped in pain. A rough hand grabbed my face roughly and my blurry vision focused in on Vincent's angry face.

"I don't give a damn what he paid me." He growled. "He's getting you in fucking pieces for that."

I shook my head to try and wiggle out of the grip he had on my face. I got lucky, his grip slipped thanks to the blood dripping down my face, and I was able to open my mouth so I could bite down on the space between his thumb and pointer finger as hard as I could.

Vincent screamed in pain and ripped his hand away. I spat his blood at him, teeth bared, and he lifted his non broken arm to slam into my face. I flinched, but before it could make contact it froze in midair.

"What the fuck!?" Vincent barked and I noticed the white webbing wrapped around his forearm. He was suddenly yanked back and off me. I used the opportunity to roll back to my feet.

"Didn't your mom ever tell you not to hit girls?"

My gaze drifted up to where the red and blue hoodie hero was perched on top of a lamppost. Spiderman was here? I had seen him on the news all the time but seeing him in person was bizarre and... and why did his voice sound so familiar to me? A henchman beside me raised his gun, and I grabbed the end of it with my right hand. He fired and I felt the reverberation in my hand. Holy shit. Henchman guy looked at me in an equal amount of shock, but I slammed my left hand into his face and he collapsed to the ground.

Another goon tried to grab me, and I turned to fight him. There were about five guys around me. More shots fired, but I could hear Spiderman fighting and insulting the goons. I elbowed the guy in the face, and he went down like a sack of bricks.

"This isn't over." Vincent growled. A black SUV drove right up to us, brakes squealing, and Vincent was slowly backpedaling toward it. He glared at Spiderman who was literally standing on the back of one of his goons. "And I'm gonna make you wish you were never born, you little freak!"

"Bold of you to assume I don't already wish that!" Spiderman threw his hand out, but Vincent grabbed a henchman out of his car and threw him forward. The web Spiderman shot out hit him, and Vincent jumped into the SUV as it took off.

I took in a shaky breath. The adrenaline was starting to fade and that let the pain settle in. My head was throbbing, and it was a miracle my nose wasn't broken. Spiderman whipped around to look at me. His face was covered in a red ski mask and a pair of swim goggles. He coughed and spoke in a very obvious fake voice, "Are you ok, ma'am?"

Familiar stature.

Familiar voice.

Familiar sense of humor.

Jesus Christ.

I grabbed him by the hoodie, "Peter!?"

"I'm am not Peter Parker. Wait—shit, I mean, Peter? Who?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, "What the fuck, kid?"

Peter looked over my shoulder and I could hear shouts. He held his hand up, "Aj, I'll explain everything later, but please you can't tell anyone!"

I opened my mouth to argue, but he took a running start and swung out of sight. My hands were shaking. Too much had happened in too little time. Someone was yelling behind me, but I couldn't even turn around. Hands wrapped around my shoulders and a man in uniform stepped into my line of vision. They were asking me if I was ok. Was I ok? I took in another shaky gasp and reality finally started to settle in.

"Sal." I cried out. "Sal!? I need to—He needs—"

The officer in front of me was starting to tilt, moving in odd, distorted shapes, and it took a second to realize it wasn't him doing that. It was my eyes. The officer was gone and instead I was staring at fast approaching concrete. Luckily, I was out before I even hit the floor.


It was a bad day.

They used to happen every once in a while, but these days they seemed to happen every other day. A terrible nightmare would roll right into a hazy day. Sometimes, he would wake up and he wouldn't know who he was. Those were the worst kind of days. Ones where he spent most of his morning trying to get a grasp on his own reality.

His name was James Buchanan Barnes. Bucky to his friends. He was from…

Where was he from? The thought escaped him so he left it alone. Pushing would only frustrate him more. He continued to walk down the empty, dark street. It was nearly midnight. He should be back in the hole he was currently living in, but he didn't want to sleep yet. He found that if he went to bed on a bad day, without knowing who he was, he'd wake up in an even worse mood.

His name was James Buchanan Barnes. Bucky to his friends. He was from Brooklyn. He served in the 107th infantry. His best friend's name was…

His hands curled up into fists in his jacket pocket. Days like this reminded him of why he was out here in the first place. His mind was fractured. Shattered. Sure, there were times where he felt clarity. Moments in time where he felt like a normal human being, but these moments reminded him that he was not that. He was not a normal human being. He was a ghost of who he used to be. A monster in disguise.

His name was James Buchanan Barnes. Bucky to his friends. He was from Brooklyn. He served in the 107th infantry. His best friend's name was Steve Rogers.

A breath of relief released the tension from his shoulders. His name was Bucky. He was Bucky. He was Bucky and he was in control of who he was, of his actions. Bucky's feet continued to carry him down the street as he tried to hold on tight to the memories he had managed to surface. It was like he was drowning. Bucky felt like he was drowning, lost at sea, with no land in sight. He spent more time with his head under the water than above, but the small moments where he could remember his name, remember where he was from, remember his family… it was like his head had broken the surface and air was finally hitting his water logged lungs.

"—this just in, the Avengers—"

Bucky had passed a building selling televisions. They were all on and all playing different channels. The words were almost lost on him, but instead he found himself walking back to try and catch the sentence again. In the top left corner or the shop's window was a television playing a world news broadcast. The woman was American, but her words were being dubbed into Romanian.

"—Police have swarmed the building, but witnesses have claimed that the unidentified man has dragged his hostage away from the front of Avengers Tower."

His eyes narrowed as the news channel showed various videos of the front of a large building in New York. Police were everywhere and Bucky had zoned out of the woman's voice as she spoke. Any kind of news centered on the Avengers always made worldwide news. Even the littlest things. This wasn't the first time he had seen them across the sea like this.

A photo flashed in the corner. Dark hair pulled up into a ponytail, lips pulled back into a confused sneer and eyebrows scrunched up in question. Burning blue eyes. The identification picture they used in the news was one from a tabloid. He recognized it. The face was directed at Hawkeye, but the archer had been cropped out of the picture.

His name was James Buchanan Barnes. Bucky to his friends. He was from Brooklyn. He served in the 107th infantry. His best friend's name was Steve. And he recognized the face in this picture with ease.

There was no grasping for the memory. It sat at the forefront of his mind waiting to be accessed.

"Aj." He mumbled in shock. The hostage was Aj. He left her behind for the Avengers to take care of, and this was their response? He told her to pass his message to Steve. Steve was supposed to be looking out for her.

They played another video of a man with his arm wrapped around her throat and a gun held to her temple staring out the front of the building. He barked something at her, she snapped back, both sentences inaudible and too blurry too lip read, and then he was dragging her back again out of sight. It was the only video the news had so they played it on repeat. Something ugly and angry curled up in his gut at the sight of a weapon pressed to her temple.

Bucky was moving before the idea even completely formed in his mind. There was a small list of people in the area who owed him favors. He had collected them over the past two months. He'd cash every single one of them to fund the terrible idea he had in mind. The raw, survival side of him told him to let it go. That was the Avengers' problem. He couldn't though. He couldn't let it go. This bad idea would calm him enough to prevent an even worse idea.

But he had to know.

Bucky had to know.


When I woke up, I was being carried. After passing out they had taken me to the hospital as a precaution. The first time I had woken up it was in the ED with a doctor looking me over, and as much as I hated that, it was the perfect place to find out more about Sal. Paramedics had gotten to him in the nick of time. He went into emergency surgery. I remember waiting in a small room with Sal's younger sister and his husband. Both were people Sal had talked about, but this was the first I was meeting them. I couldn't even look them in the eye. It was my fault their loved one was fighting for his life.

"Aj? How do you feel, little one?" Thor asked.

He was the one carrying me. I recognized that now and I vaguely recognized the elevator we stood in. We were back in the Tower. I twisted in his arms, trying to loosen his grip, "No, I gotta go back to the hospital. Sal—"

"Your friend is doing well. He was moved to a private room in the care center. He had not woken up yet, but your healthcare workers were confident of his recovery." Thor replied, his hands tightened around me, "Relax."

I melted into his grip, too tired to fight the god of thunder, "How are you back already? I couldn't have been asleep that long."

"I flew ahead of the group. With Mjolnir, I am faster than their jet." Thor replied. "The others aren't far behind though. How do you feel?"

"Woozy." I replied. Right now, I wasn't in pain. There was just an empty feeling in my gut, a spinning sensation in my head, and cotton in my mouth. Pain meds. Someone had given me paid meds. "Who gave me meds?"

Thor began to walk again, "Before we left the care center, a nurse gave you a shot of something. Morphine? I believe that was what she called it."

"Fuuuuuuuck." I groaned and tried to keep my heavy eyes open, "I don't like meds."

"Without them, she said you'd be in pain. You were hit very hard."

"Pain is better than this." I mumbled. "Pain I get used to."

Thor chuckled and I felt him set me down onto a bed. I glanced around the room and it took me a second to connect the dots. He had carried me into the medical lab. I tried to sit up, but Thor lightly pushed me back down as he took the seat beside the bed.

"You should rest, Aj." Thor said. "The others wanted to call, but it might be best for you to sleep."

I didn't fight him on that just because I was too tired to. I hummed and closed my eyes, "How did the mission go?"

"It went well. No issues arose, but we were unable to locate the scepter."

"I don't know what the scepter is." I mumbled back.

"Loki used it when he attacked your world two years ago." Thor explained. I wondered if he knew this was probably confidential information he was giving me. Then again, with the amount of morphine the hospital put into my system I might not even remember this conversation. "It can shape the minds and hearts of men. Put them under the control of whoever wields it."

I nodded my head against the pillow, "Sounds dangerous."

"It is." Thor replied. He cleared his throat, "Aj, did you know the man who attacked you?"

"No." I forced my eyes open and met his concerned gaze. "Not exactly. Vincent Morgan. Reaper. He was the brother of the guy I used to work for."

"Ah, I see." Thor said and there was a pause in the conversation. He finally spoke up again with a sigh, "He slipped away. The authorities were unable to locate him."

That wasn't surprising news. Vincent Morgan didn't seem like the kind of guy that was going to be caught by the local police. He had resources. That much could be seen based off the number of men he brought with him and the explosives he had set off.

"Wait." I said trying to sit up again, but Thor stopped me with ease, "Peter. I need to talk to Peter?"

"The child?" Thor questioned.

I opened my mouth to reply, but my words came out as a garbled mess. My eyes grew heavy again and I sunk into my pillow. Just a little sleep. Just a little sleep and then I could talk to Peter.


The next time I woke up, I felt it. My head was throbbing and my face ached. I could also feel the swelling around my eyes. The butt of the gun had hit me dead center in the face. I was lucky it just busted the skin of the bridge of my nose open rather than breaking it entirely.

My eyes opened, but now I could feel the strain of opening them despite the swelling and bruising. Someone in my periphery moved and I glanced over to see Peter scoot closer to the bed. He grabbed my hand, "Aj? Are you ok? You look like you're in pain."

"I am." I groaned and sat up on one elbow. "Where's Thor?"

"He stepped out. He had JARVIS call me earlier, saying you wanted to see me." Peter explained. "Mrs. Jones wants you to call her later. She saw you on the news. Mj wants to hear from you too."

I nodded then flinched at the movement, "JARVIS, dim the lights please." The lights dimmed considerably and that helped my headache. Didn't take it away, but it was a step in the right direction. I turned back to Peter, "Dude, you're Spiderman?"

"Hah, what? No. I think you hit your head really hard, Aj. That's crazy."

I gave him a deadpanned stare, "Pete, I'm concussed, not stupid."

The kid sighed and glanced around. He came even closer and whispered, "Please you can't tell anyone, Aj. No one knows—except, you now, but please—"

"I won't, kid, I just…" I sucked in a sharp breath, "How?"

"I went to Oscorp with Mj to help her with her essay and…well…I got bit. By a spider. And it, you know, made me…spider like."

God, my new life was fucking weird.

I laid back down and pointed at him, "I need a minute or two to absorb all of that. And I'm sure once this headache passes, I'm gonna be pissed at you."

"Pissed at me?" Peter's eyes widened, "Why?"

"This is dangerous!" I whispered back. "You're throwing yourself into fights. You faced down a group of armed gunmen with nothing but a hoodie and swim goggles on."

Peter pressed his lips together, "I had to, Aj. They were gonna hurt you."

I sighed, "Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it. If it weren't for you, they probably would've gotten me, but… don't do something like that again, Pete. If you got hurt because of me…"

Damn, I couldn't even finish the sentence. I told Aunt May I'd look out for him. This kid was all she had in the world. It was bad enough my drama got Sal hurt. If something happened to Peter because of me? God, I didn't even want to think of the hypothetical situation. When I didn't have a major headache, I was gonna give him the scolding of a lifetime. Maybe I could convince him to hang up the hoodie for good.

"Mr. Stark and the other Avengers should be here soon." Peter changed the subject. "JARVIS says they're only half an hour out."

Good. I'd be nice to see them and make sure they really were ok after their mission. Although, I knew the mother hen in each of them was going to come roaring out. The ache in my face was starting to fade at a suspicious speed. I was good at acclimating, but not that good. I glanced to my other side and for the first time noticed an IV in my arm.

"Who the hell put an IV in me?" I asked, my words slurring.

"Oh, Mr. Stark called in a nurse to the medical lab. She put the IV in and checked your wounds again." Peter answered.

My eyes landed on the morphine pump attached to the IV. Oh, fuck not again. I groaned and my heavy head fell back against the pillow. My other hand lazily tried to pull on the IV, but Peter was quick to stop me.

I shook my head, "Pete, no more drugs."

"What?"

"Stop the—" My heavy eyes fluttered again. "Fuck, drugs."

Then I fell back into my drug induced haze.


Steve sat in the seat by the bed still in uniform. He had gone straight from the quinjet to this spot and hadn't moved since. Clint and Natasha were downstairs working with Sam trying to track down the man who did this. Bruce was flittering in and out of the medical lab checking up on her every once in a while. Tony had slipped out for a moment, but Steve had a feeling he'd be back in soon.

Aj looked rough. It reminded him of when they first met. Luckily, the wounds weren't nearly as bad as they were that time, but he hated seeing the ugly purple and yellow of bruises tainting her pretty skin. The swelling around her eyes had lessened, but they were still colored with bruises, like a racoon. The bridge of her nose had an open gash that had been cleaned up.

Steve rested his hand over his eyes in exhaustion. He was leaning on the medical bed wondering why it was so hard to keep this one woman safe. Bucky had told him to keep her safe for him and he really didn't think it'd be that hard of a promise to keep. Steve knew the life they lived had risks. He knew, realistically, that any mission could go wrong and he could lose his newly found family. Losing Aj though? She had never signed up for this life. If anyone deserved a normal, happy existence it was her. Why was that so hard to accomplish?

"Captain Rogers." His head snapped up to see Aj shooting him a tired smile. Seeing the color of her eyes was such a relief. Steve felt some of the tension in his body leave him. She chuckled, "My face hurts again. Guess that means I got taken off the morphine."

Steve nodded, "Peter told the nurse what you requested, and she took it off. Are you sure you don't want—"

"I hate meds." She groaned and sat up. Steve helped her by adjusting the bed so she had something to lean up against. "Makes my brain feel like static."

"Fair enough." He sighed. Steve shook his head, "You scared the shit out of us, Aj."

Aj shot him a side glance, "I didn't exactly plan to be taken hostage while you were out and about saving the free world, you know?"

Steve chuckled. He hadn't meant for it to sound like that. He nodded, "Right. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I was—We were just…worried."

"I know. I was messing with you." Aj smirked. "I think the racoon eyes are hindering my comedic timing."

Steve let out another laugh. Hearing her crack jokes, period, was such a relief. Even once he knew she was ok, he couldn't fully relax. The flight back from Spain was painful for everyone stuck in that quinjet.

Aj suddenly reached forward and lightly brushed her fingers against his left eyebrow, "You got a boo-boo right here. You forget to duck?"

"Something like that." Steve replied. The bruise on his face had been bigger, but thanks to the serum it was nearly gone already. He wished he could give Aj just a little bit right now. Anything to get rid of those awful shiners. "We saw you on the news."

"Really?" Aj nodded, "JARVIS play me my TV debut."

"Of course. If you plan to continue making appearances on television though, may I suggest a different career route to do so?"

JARVIS broadcasted the news clip on the wall beside them. The reporter was talking again with Aj's picture in the corner of the screen. He glanced down to his hands. Steve had seen that news reel too many times to count.

"That's the picture they used of me?" Aj cried. "Oh, come on. I look awful."

"I love that that's your biggest concern right now." Steve chuckled and looked back up. He waved his hand toward the video and JARVIS took it away. "How do you feel? Really?"

Aj shrugged, "My face hurts, but that's expected. I feel…"

Her words trailed off and Steve could see the pain flashing in her eyes. It was the kind of pain she took on that wasn't physical. He could make an easy leap to what it was about too. Steve reached forward and took her hand, "Sal is doing ok. He woke up."

"Good." Aj said, but her voice cracked. She cleared her throat. "Good. I'm glad."

"Sweetheart, you know this isn't your fault." Steve said firmly.

Aj nodded, her bottom lip quivered a bit before she bit down on it hard. He squeezed her hand and she relaxed, "I know. I just can't help but think…it's my past that hurt him. Sal had nothing to do with any of that. I told Vincent to put that damn gun on me but he just…"

Steve didn't like the fact that Sal got hurt in their Tower, but he also didn't like that Aj was so self-sacrificing. With their luck this wouldn't be the last time they were in a scenario like this and God did Steve wish she was just a little less brave. He loved her for her strength and courage, but that didn't stop him from being terrified.

He didn't think. He just pulled her hand up to his lips and pressed them softly to the back of her hand before setting it back down. Aj's eyes softened and she gave him a small, sad smile.

"I told them we should've brought you with us on the mission." Tony's voice called out. They both glanced over to see him stroll into the medical lab. His voice was all jokes, but Steve could see the rigidity in his frame. "Just leave you on the quinjet while we kick ass. They said no, that it'd just be trouble, but I knew… I knew you could get in just as much trouble here by yourself."

Aj grinned, "Some people can balance a spoon on their nose, I can attract the most dangerous figure in a nine-mile radius."

Tony walked closer and rested his hands on the frame at the foot of the bed, "How do you feel, sunshine?"

"Kind of like I got hit in the face with the butt of a rifle."

"Keep it up. I will lock you away to your floor for the rest of your GD life." Tony replied and though Aj laughed at the prospect, Steve knew he wasn't kidding. The man was a hair away from building a base on the moon just to keep Aj away from Earth bound dangers.

Aj shrugged, "Really. I'm fine. By the end of the week, all this—", She motioned to her face, "—will be better. Just a bad memory."

"Thank God." Steve voiced.

"I got to use some of the cool tricks Clint and y'all showed me." Aj glanced back at him. Then she nodded, "Nat would be proud of me too. I broke Vincent's arm with that one hold she taught me."

Steve grinned while Tony made a comment on it. Aj was in the process of being kidnapped and she still didn't stop fighting. It terrified him, yes, but by God he was proud too. Tony nodded once, "You bit him too? Good. Hopefully, he'll get rabies."

"I'm not rabid." Aj scoffed and Tony just shrugged. She shook her head with a small laugh, "Actually, that was kind of the point where I got saved. Spiderman swung in and helped me out. Spiderman."

Steve had only seen the hero on TV, but he was determined to find the guy just so he could send him a damned fruit basket. He had never been more thankful for a vigilante hero than he was right now. He glanced up to see Tony's eyes had narrowed at Aj with a small smirk that she stared back at with question.

"You know, don't you?" Tony said.

"I…don't know?" Aj replied back.

Tony grinned and shook his head, "Oh, no, no. You know."

Steve watched Aj's eyes widen slightly, "How do you know that I know?"

"I know, that you know, because I know." Tony said back.

Steve blinked in confusion, "What the hell are you two talking about?"

"Nothing you need to know, Cap." Tony chuckled.

With a shake of his head, he let the topic drop as Tony and Aj shot knowing looks at each other in a silent conversation. While they argued with just their eyes, Steve watched Aj with her hand still held tightly in his. The mission had gone well, and Aj was safe. That was all he could ask for today.


I had thought that the Avengers were paranoid before. Apparently, I hadn't even scratched the surface. For the next three days, they wouldn't let me leave a room by myself. I constantly had a Hawkeye, Black Widow, Iron Man, or Captain America shaped shadow. For a second, I thought Bruce was the only one with common sense and that's why he wasn't stalking me, but then I found out it was just because he thought the Hulk emerging wouldn't be as helpful as the others.

Clint had come with me when I interviewed the first applicant, Tony the second, but that was expected. Natasha had told me they wanted to be a part of that before I was nearly kidnapped. Steve came to the hospital with me to visit Sal, who, thank God, was doing amazing still. Even Sam, who had flown back up to New York after Steve went down to DC for mission work, lingered around me when we went out for dinner. As if he was expecting an incoming bullet that he'd have to throw himself in front of.

I think a part of the paranoia was that nobody had been able to track Vincent Morgan down. The Reaper had disappeared into the wind with a limp arm from his broken elbow. Then it only got worse when I revealed to them that he had told me that he knew the Avengers had left for Spain and that's why he attacked at that time. They lost their damned minds at that.

"I'm gonna go get some coffee." I said and stood up from the dining room table.

"Yum. Count me in." Clint stood up from the couch.

I groaned, "No. Please. Dear God, please. I want two seconds alone!" Clint held his hands out with a mock confused look. As if he had no idea what the hell I was talking about. I walked over to him and grabbed his hands, "Please. It's just the coffee shop around the corner."

"Aj—"

"Clint, I'm begging you." I replied. "I get it, everyone's on edge, but I'm not gonna get attacked three days after being attacked. The Reaper has to nurse his wounds a little longer than that."

Clint shook his head, "Someone else—"

"Clint." I said firmly. "I'm a grown ass woman asking if she can go grab a cup of coffee alone. That's already pathetic as is."

"We're just being cautious."

"I know, and I appreciate it." I gave him a tight smile, "But I need just a little room to breathe. If you let me go I promise I won't whine about gun training and you can time me. If I'm not back in an hour you can run down the street with your bow to get me."

He tilted his head in annoyance, but I could see him considering it. I had put up with a lot the past three days in an attempt to mollify them, but enough was enough. I understood that they were worried, and I understood that technically their worries were justified, but I needed a little room to breathe.

Clint sighed, "You have 30 minutes, and we start gun training as soon as you get back."

I threw my arms around him in a tight hug and then took off running to the elevator. I wanted every single second I could spare spent sitting at that coffee shop and just relaxing. Thanks to JARVIS it didn't take me long to get to the lobby and I took off running again. My feet slowed down when I caught sight of Sal's coffee stand. His employees were there working, but Sal was still in the hospital. It was a miracle he was alive, but all I could think of was that he got sucked into my shitty past.

He got shot because of me.

Nausea rolled over me again and I forced myself to start running again. The cold air outside settled my stomach and I jogged down the street avoiding the other New Yorkers who didn't even give me a passing glance. I was hardly the weirdest thing they've seen on the street I bet. It couldn't have taken me longer than 3 minutes to get to the coffee shop and another 3 to get my drink. I dropped down onto an outdoor patio chair and wrapped my hands around the hot to-go cup.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back just soaking in the sounds of the city around me. I loved the others, but God it was nice to just enjoy the outside air by myself. This was my favorite past time on my off days before I met the Avengers. I let my thumb trace the ring of my lid where it could reach. It wasn't snowing today which had worked out in my favor. My mind drifted back to Vincent Morgan. He hinted that someone other than Boss was trying to get their hands on me, and for the life of me I couldn't think of who else would want me dead. Sure, I had pissed off a lot of people, but up till now I thought the only one I pissed off enough to want blood was Boss.

One of the Avengers' answers to this issue, other than stalking me, was learning to shoot. I had spent the last three days arguing with them on this point. The only time I had ever even touched a gun was when Bucky shoved one in my hands in that bunker hallway and since I was half blacked out, I didn't think it really counted. After watching my friend get gunned down by the Reaper…well, I didn't want a gun in my hands. It was unsettling. I understood why they wanted me to learn to shoot, seemed like a very helpful skillset, but it just made my skin crawl.

Movement in my direction made my eyes snap up from my cup just in time to see a large man making his way directly toward me. His dark features were furrowed into a glare. The thick winter pelts hanging off him along with his build and face made me immediately think he stepped off a plane straight from Russia and I tensed.

"Oh, God, not again." I mumbled and tried to push the patio chair I was in backwards. At this rate, the Avengers were going to duct tape me the wall and never let me out again. Nobody else around us seemed to notice my distress.

Before I could get up, the Russian pulled a brown paper bag out of his jacket and dropped it in front of me. In a thick accent he spoke, "I've been waiting for you to leave Tower. You make me wait too long. Tell him my debt is paid in full."

Then he just walked off. I glanced over my shoulder to watch him continue to walk until he was out of view. What the hell had that been about? Who did he owe a debt to and why was I involved in any sort of way? I spun back around quickly and stared at the bag like it was a severed head. Was this a bomb or something? Were more people going to pop out and attack me? I glanced all around me, but I couldn't spot anyone. I also didn't feel like anyone was watching me.

A sharp shrill ring made me nearly jump out of my skin. My eyes landed on the ringing bag. Cautiously, I opened the bag and pulled out its only content. It was a dark gray flip phone. The kind of old tech that would make Tony throw up just by being in its vicinity. It was ringing in my hand, the number on the small window unfamiliar to me.

Well, I wasn't dead yet.

I flipped it open and brought it to my ear, "Hello? Person who would like not to be murdered answering. May I ask who this is?"

A very familiar, deep chuckle came through the line and I felt my breath catch in my throat. I could feel my heart beating in my chest. No way. This wasn't happening. I must have been hallucinating. All those thoughts melted away when that same comforting, familiar voice finally spoke up.

"Hey, doll."