A/N: Another one a couple days early but I kind of want to get the Christmas chapter up around Christmas time lol? I don't think I'll do it since Christmas is episode 21, but as long as it's in the general timeframe I'll be happy lolol. Also, again, side note, I am branching away from canon which is why Spiderman is already on scene and why a few little things are different. You'll notice it when you see it.


Chapter 18:

Can You Hear Me Now?


"you can't forget someone when you're still hoping for them to come back." –j.b. [will i ever stop hoping?]


"Hey, doll."

I wasn't breathing. This wasn't happening. Maybe I had a brain bleed? The doctor had cleared me from getting hit in the face with a gun, but hey, maybe they missed something. That was the only logical explanation as to why I was talking to a missing man that multiple agents of SHIELD still couldn't find.

"Did I leave you speechless?" He said with another chuckle.

"TosJames Buchanan Barnes?" I gasped.

He hummed over the line, "It makes sense that you would know my real name now."

Suddenly, my mind connected the dots to what was currently happening. I scoffed and gripped the phone tighter, "Yeah! Yeah, I do! No thanks to you, Toska." I heard him chuckle, but I kept going, "What the hell would you have done if I got the word Toska tattooed on my forehead only to find out your damn name is—"

I stopped myself before shouting out his name.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to lie to you, I just…It was nice meeting someone who didn't know who I was. Got caught up in it, I guess."

"That's… fair, I guess." I grumbled. "James—"

"Bucky." He corrected quickly. Despite using the name Bucky with Steve, I didn't plan on calling him that to his face just because it didn't seem polite? I don't know. I figured James had been a safe bet.

"Bucky." I repeated. "How is…How is this happening? The scary Russian guy? He said his debt to you is fulfilled?"

"I didn't mean to scare you. He's a guy that owed me. I gave him a little help a few weeks back. He's been waiting outside the Tower for you to step out alone."

I leaned back in my seat, "If it were up to the Avengers that would've been, uh, never." There was a beat of silence before I spoke again, "Why now? Why reach out to me at all? Shouldn't you be reaching out to someone like Ste—"

"I tried to forget you." Bucky replied. The words shouldn't have meant anything to me, but I frowned at them, nonetheless. "Figured it'd be safer, but…I saw you on the news."

I groaned, "Oh, God, that awful picture of me made worldwide news?"

"You looked good, doll."

"You're only saying that because the last time you saw me I was an amorphous, bleeding, blob of a person." I said and he laughed over the line. Hearing his voice, his laugh, was a relief. He sounded ok. He sounded safe. Sometimes a word or a feeling would put me back into that dark hellhole of a bunker and I'd feel like I was freezing from inside out. Bucky's voice put me back there, but not in a negative light. Instead, I remembered the warmth of his smile and how I clung to that when my body screamed of nothing but pain. "Bucky, I miss you."

I hadn't meant to blurt that out. He must have been equally as shocked because I heard the soft intake of a breath. It was silent for another beat before he spoke, "Are you ok, Aj? Are you safe?"

"I am." I replied then followed it up with, "Steve misses you too."

"Aj, I have to go—"

"No!" I shouted and ignored the glances that looked over at me. I shook my head, "Please, no, don't hang up. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I won't mention that again. Please…Please don't hang up."

He sighed, "I just needed to make sure you were ok. The news said you were taken to the hospital, but I hadn't caught an update."

"I—I passed out on the scene, and then I stayed in the hospital for a bit because a friend of mine got hurt." I tried to explain. Sal was truly doing better, but he was still in the hospital for observation. "The guy that tried to kidnap me was the brother of the guy who sold me to Vladimir." I heard Bucky mumble something in another language and based on the tone it was probably a curse. "He shot my friend…"

"Is your friend ok?"

I nodded despite being on a phone, "Yeah. He's doing better. Steve or Tony usually go with me to visit him in the hospital. I'll go again later today."

"You know that isn't your fault?" Bucky said firmly. I hadn't stated what I thought, what I still felt, but he must have heard it in my tone. He spoke again, just as firmly, "The only person to blame is the guy who pulled the trigger. That isn't on you, doll."

I chuckled and leaned my hand into the palm of my hand, which was now starting to freeze from the cold, "The asshole called me 'doll' so I broke his elbow."

Bucky let out another warm laugh, "Good. He deserved worse than that, but I'm glad you're ok."

"What time is it…wherever you are?"

"It's…late." Bucky said. Apparently giving me an exact time would be too much of a risk. "It's early afternoon in New York isn't it?"

I nodded again, "Yeah. I'm at a coffee shop getting some alone time. Alone time I'm almost out of actually…"

"You're really out in the city alone?" Bucky asked sharply.

I rolled my eyes, "Listen, I already got the lecture from the crew. Clint's given me 30 minutes out on my own. Plus, the only reason I got this phone was because I was out alone!" Bucky mumbled something that sounded like he was reluctantly agreeing with my point. I chuckled, "As soon as I get back, he's gonna try and teach me how to shoot a gun."

"That's a great idea. You should know how, and you should carry one on you at all times."

"Bucky…" I started. I wanted to try and plead with him to come back to New York. It would be a way to help him and help Steve. It was a win-win-win situation. We'd all be happy. The words drifted through my head, but I remembered his reaction when I told him that Steve missed him. I swallowed the words, "I have to go. I don't want Clint to show up here and ask questions about the dinosaur of a phone I'm using."

Bucky sighed, "Right. Yeah, of course. Aj, please don't tell—"

"I know." I replied. "Secret's safe with me, Toska." He let out a chuckle, but it didn't sound as happy as the ones before it. There was a tense pause before I threw out my last lifeline. "Bucky, can we…" He waited for me to finish and I nervously swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. "Can we talk again? I know you said you wanted to forget me, and I know you'll probably say something like 'it's too dangerous'—"

"It is dangerous."

"But, I…Please?" I begged. "Please can we talk again? Same time tomorrow?"

Another pause, this one the worst of all because I knew how easily he could slip away. I could hear Bucky mentally planning an escape route through the phone. All he'd have to do is hang up, snap his phone, and then he'd be gone again.

"Same time tomorrow." He agreed.

I released a breath I hadn't known I had been holding, "Great. Yes. I, uh, I'm looking forward to it! I'll tell you all about how terrible my shooting lesson is gonna go today."

Bucky chuckled, the humor and warmth was there again, "Talk to you tomorrow, doll."

The line cut off and I pulled the phone away from my ear to smile at the small, thick, gray device. I shoved it into my jacket pocket and for a minute I just sat there grinning at myself. Bucky was ok. He was ok. I hated that I couldn't tell Steve that. Bucky had asked me not to, and I would never betray his trust. In the long run though, it would work out because I planned on getting Bucky to come back to New York. Even if it was the last thing I did.

I'd get Bucky home to Steve.


Clint was honestly surprised by how well Aj was handling this. He knew she was the kind that absolutely hated to be smothered with every fiber of her being. So, the fact that she had gone three days with nothing more than a few exasperated looks was a damned miracle. Clint also knew that him and the others were being a bit…overbearing. Honestly, they couldn't help it. Their biggest fear was losing one another, but at least they could trust that their family was well-trained, well-armed, and capable of protecting themselves. Clint didn't have to worry about anyone kidnapping Natasha. He was more concerned for any idiot dumb enough to try and kidnap Natasha.

Aj was a good fighter. Hell, she was downright impressive for someone who never had training at their level. For someone who walked off the street and picked up what him and Natasha taught her, she was amazing. She was not, however, at the skill level that would put any of their minds to rest. Aj was just good enough at fighting to piss off anyone who tried to take her and that was it. Case in point, she snapped that dickhead's elbow in half, nearly bit a hole in his hand, and probably broke some ribs from the sonic pulse she slammed into his chest, but he had still been walking. If Spiderman hadn't swung in, she would've been taken away by a very dangerous, very angry villain. It made all of them realize that what they were doing wasn't enough. They were going to crack down on her training schedule because like hell they were going to lose her to the villain of the week. Not on Clint's life.

"Why are you even down here? Don't you have a Compound to design?"

"Well my PA is down here—"

"Uh, excuse you, I was promoted to Public Relations Officer."

"Officer? I didn't use the word officer."

"I can't exactly use the word expert since that I am not."

Clint chuckled and walked out of the gun closet back into the gun range. The Tower's lower basement stored the arc reactor that gave this entire building power, but the upper basement had a fully equipped gun range. Aj was sitting on the counter with Tony leaning against the divider beside her. Since she had come back from her little coffee trip, the girl was nothing but smiles. The bright grin she wore hadn't left her features once yet.

"You shooting with us, Stark?" Clint asked.

Aj snickered, "Tony knows how to shoot?"

That started a whole new argument between the two. Clint shook his head and set the weapons he had grabbed on the counter beside Aj.

Tony scoffed, "I designed weapons for the military, and you think I can't shoot?"

"Sorry." Aj rolled her eyes. Clint tapped her thigh and she jumped off the counter. "Lemme rephrase… Tony, do you know how to shoot well?"

Clint grabbed the top of Aj's head and spun her around to face him before the two could get into another battle of wits. He motioned to the gun in front of her and her eyes widened. He continued, "Have you ever shot a weapon before?"

"Nope." She popped her 'p' casually.

"Figured." Clint replied, "Today we're starting with the AR-15—"

Aj pointed to the rifle, "This thing? It's huge!"

"That's what she—" Tony began but Aj elbowed him without breaking eye contact with Clint. He wheezed out a laugh and nodded.

Clint shook his head. Maybe he should kick Tony Stark out of here before trying to teach her to shoot. He was going to be nothing but a distraction and that was coming from Hawkeye. He picked up the weapon, "This is a baby gun, Aj."

"Baby gun? How is this a baby gun?"

"They only get bigger and badder from here." Clint shrugged.

Aj pouted, "I thought you were gonna teach me to shoot like a pistol or whatever."

"I will." Clint nodded. "But I want you to be good at all of them. What happens when a bad guy drops a weapon but it's one you've never practiced shooting before? Then what, Aj?"

"Uh, I die?"

Tony scoffed and Clint shook his head at her. He stepped forward, using his foot to kick out hers so her stance was a bit wider. Clint put the AR-15 into her hands and helped her get her grip correct. He even readjusted the buttstock for her so it rested comfortably against her shoulder.

"Can't I just keep punching people?" Aj asked with pleading eyes.

"You know that saying, 'Don't bring a knife to a gun fight?'" Clint replied and she nodded. He smirked, "Well bringing your fists to a gunfight is fucking worse. Now focus."

Aj was a quick learner, she was smart, so getting her familiar with the weapon was easy. She now knew every bell and whistle that came with the gun, and if you looked at her she would look like a pro. Problem was, she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.

"You're shit at this." Clint said. If Tony made a comment on her he didn't catch it. Rather than put on protective gear, he just flipped off his hearing aids.

Aj yanked down her noise cancelling earmuffs, so they hung around her neck, and then turned to face him. She took one hand off the gun so she could sign the phrase 'fuck you', and rather than using the shorthand of it she signed each individual letter to him with emphasis. Clint lifted his hand and activated his aids again.

"—did you see how I hit my target every time?" Tony teased.

"What the hell am I doing wrong!?"

"Everything." Clint shook his head.

Aj snapped her gaze back to him, "You're the one who taught me!"

Clint chuckled, "I put you in the right position, but you're just making rookie mistakes. Don't jam your finger on the trigger, make it an even pull. You're flinching too, and that's pulling the barrel. This is just stuff you'll get better at with practice." Aj grumbled under her breath and he chuckled and clapped her once on the shoulder, "I'll be back. Tony is in charge."

"What?"

"Hah!"

Clint left the two of them in the gun range and assumed they'd have the self-control to not delve into a fight around firearms. It kind of felt like leaving two toddlers in a kitchen alone with knives and boiling water on the stove. It wasn't often Clint felt like the adult of the situation. This was nice. He rode the elevator all the way up to the penthouse. Bruce had a lecture today at some university, Steve was in DC with Sam, but Natasha was still here.

He could see her bright red hair through the glass wall of the Conference room. Clint jogged up the stairs and walked into the room only to be met by various screens up and running looking for the infamous Reaper. They had found trails of him in Las Vegas going back a little over twenty years. Vincent Morgan was a big-time drug dealer in the city of sin who had his hand in nearly every trade there was. The guy had a monopoly on the Vegas drug scene and that pulled in a hell of a lot of cash. Enough that he hadn't had to get his hands dirty. There was no criminal file on him. Anytime the authorities got close, someone else took the fall for him.

"Find anything new?" Clint asked.

Natasha shook her head. Her hands were buried in the hoodie pocket that she wore. The hoodie that definitely belonged to Steve based on the size. Clint walked closer and set his chin on her shoulder with one arm around her waist. Natasha responded by pulling one hand out of the hoodie to reach back and cup his face.

"He disappeared. I know he had sources, but they wouldn't be capable of hiding from us to this extent." She hummed in frustration.

Clint clenched his jaw, "So that confirms it?"

"It doesn't confirm it, but…" Natasha paused, "It doesn't look good."

The main theory was that Vincent Morgan, aka the Reaper, was working with HYDRA. It explained why he was able to escape so easily and how he knew that the Avengers had been in Spain. Nobody liked this theory though because it meant for some Godforsaken reason, HYDRA knew Aj existed. Now maybe, they weren't related? Maybe Vincent Morgan was working with HYDRA for some other reason and just used their resources to exact a little revenge for his baby half-brother.

They were never that lucky though.

"If anything, HYDRA sees her potential as a possible inhuman." Natasha thought aloud. "Von Strucker is playing around with enhancements on normal humans. Maybe he wants to try on an inhuman who hasn't been through terrigenesis. It's hard to find that and Aj is their best bet."

Clint sighed and shifted so his face was buried in Natasha's shoulder. He wondered if they were at fault for this. By bringing Aj into their lives had they shed light on her potential for HYDRA to see? Her life before had been terrible, and Clint hated thinking about her living in that shit hole again, fighting for less than nothing, while being tortured by a prick named Eugene. As Godawful as all that was though, it was a walk in the park compared to anything HYDRA would do to her.

"Fuck, Tash." Clint mumbled against her.

"I know." Natasha buried her fingers in his hair, "I know."


The applicant's name was Beth Whitmore. She was a couple years younger than me with long, light brown hair and round hazel eyes. Her round face made her look even younger than she was, and if I had to pick a word to describe her based off the fifteen minutes I've known her it would be meek. Beth was the last of the applicants I was interviewing. She had met Natasha and I for an early lunch at a small café down the street from the Tower.

I rolled my sore shoulders. No one told me I was going to be sore from all the shooting I did yesterday. Quickly, I cleared my throat, "What kind of stuff do you like to do for fun, Beth?"

"I really enjoy reading, I'm a romantic at heart I guess, and I paint too." Beth answered with a small smile. I had told her the interview wouldn't be overly formal so she wore a colorful, long sleeve shirt with an overall skirt over it. I didn't know how she wasn't cold. Granted she wore stockings under the skirt with boots, but still. "I've always enjoyed being creative. I think that's why I picked public relations."

Natasha quirked an eyebrow at her, "Really? How so?"

Under the redhead's gaze, I could feel Beth sweating. Natasha as per usual looked like a model in the casual day outfit she picked, and her green eyes certainly knew how to bore into someone. Beth cleared her throat, "Well, uh, it's like getting to be creative with someone's life, you know? In this day and age, everything is online. Everyone has an online identity. Being in public relations allows me to… well, to put it simply, paint their identity to the world."

I glanced down at the iPad she had brought with her, it had been a minute and a half since I saw an Apple product rather than a Stark one, and looked over the app she had opened. Beth had her own Instagram page open for us to see. She used it as a kind of advertisement of her skills. The girl did good work on Instagram. I'd follow her. If I had an Instagram, that is.

"Um, the key aspect I used in making my Instagram page was using reality to my benefit." Beth motioned to the iPad. "For example, if I was working with the—the Avengers", she chuckled to herself with a blush, "I'd want to showcase pictures of behind the scenes moments. Relaxing at home, getting dinner…things that humanize them to the world."

"I like that." I smirked with a nod and Beth beamed at the praise. This kid was downright adorable. She began to ramble about her lack of experience because of how she just got out of school when a shrill ring cut through the air. My eyes widened as Natasha looked over at me. I quickly stood, "Hey, I'm gonna take this call."

"Did you change your ringtone?" Natasha questioned.

"Just spicing up my life, Nat." I turned to Beth, "Excuse me a second."

Beth nodded and I hurried away from the table so I would be out of Natasha's prying eyes. I pulled the black and gray phone out of my pocket and smiled. Same time as yesterday. Quickly, I flipped it open, looking like a 90's drug dealer on this thing, and held it up to my ear, "Bucky?"

"Afternoon, doll."

"I'm glad you called. I know you said you would, but I just…" I chuckled, "I'm glad."

Bucky spoke, "I'm a man of my word. When I remember, at least."

"Comforting." I replied. "How was your day? I know you're probably at the end of it now compared to me."

"It was good." Bucky cleared his throat, "The same as always. How'd shooting lessons go?"

I groaned and he chuckled at my expense, "According to Clint and Tony, I am the worst shot this world has ever seen. Which is a gross overstatement in my opinion, but yeah, I do kinda suck at it."

"Just takes practice is all."

"That's what they said." I grumbled. "Punching people in the face is just so much easier. If I, very politely, ask the bad guys to put their guns down and fight me like a man—"

"Yeah, they'd shoot you, doll."

"I was afraid you'd say that." I sighed in good nature. "Can you comfort me? Tell me how when you got your start in the military you were bad at it too?"

"No, I was perfect immediately." Bucky replied with a chuckle and I laughed. "That's what I was known for. Perfect hair, perfect shot."

I laughed again and remembered he had been some kind of sniper or something. Granny reminded me of this fact because these days all she talked about was Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, and I still didn't pay enough attention to it.

"Granny did tell me you were like some super sniper."

"Granny?"

I grinned while talking about her, "She was my foster mom when I was an angry, bloodthirsty teenager. The only person who gave a shit about me. I lost touch with her for a little less than a decade, but we reconnected."

"I'm glad. Sounds like a kind woman."

I nodded, "She is. She's a history nut. Kind of obsessed with you and Steve. She thinks you're the bee's knees."

Bucky barked out a laugh, "High praise. Smart woman too."

"Well, I don't know how smart she is for putting up with my dumbass for all the years she has." I replied. "She's either dumb or a glutton for punishment."

"I think you're selling yourself short, doll."

I shook my head and leaned against the wall I was hiding behind, "Don't distract me. You were supposed to give me tips on how not to shoot badly, Mr. Sniper."

"I don't got anything to tell you other than practice." Bucky replied. I liked when he said longer sentences because it's when his Brooklyn accent would really come out full throttle, "You know how fighting comes natural to you?"

"Yeah."

"That's shooting for me." Bucky replied. "When I joined the 107th, my commander saw potential. He gave me a chance, and…I guess the rest is history."

A flash of red across the café had me ducking down, "Shit, Nat is looking for me."

"I'll let you go." Bucky said in a tired voice.

"But you'll call again tomorrow right? Or... Can I call you?"

Bucky let out a sad chuckle, "You can always call me, doll. If you ever need anything."

"So, we can talk again tomorrow? Hopefully for longer?"

"Why…Why do you wanna keep talking to me?" Bucky asked, but there was something in his voice that sounded suspiciously like fear. It was almost like he was afraid to hear my answer and I didn't understand why.

I glanced over the wall again before speaking, "That's a silly question. It's because I wanna talk to you." Then a thought hit me. I wanted to talk to him because I liked talking to him and because I was hoping to sway him into coming home. But maybe I was bothering him? That wasn't my intent at all. "I mean, it's okay if you don't wanna talk, Bucky, I'm not trying to twist your arm—"

"No, that's not it at all." Bucky said quickly. "I'd love to talk to you again."

"Good. Talk to you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah. Bye, doll. Have a good day."

"Night, Bucky."

I hung up the phone and slid it back into my jacket pocket. When I turned around the wall to head back, I had to force myself to come to a screeching stop in order not to collide into Natasha. She was smirking at me in her very, all-knowing way.

"Nat!"

She motioned to me, "How was your phone call?"

"Good. Tony. You know how it is, he never shuts the hell up." I chuckled and began to walk around her. She fell into step with me. "Is Beth still there?"

"Yes. I just wanted to check up on you." She replied.

I clapped my hands and motioned for us to get back. I really, really hoped she hadn't heard me talking to Bucky. I told him I wouldn't tell them about him, and I wasn't planning on messing that up. When we got to the table, I quickly sat down and shot Beth a grin, "Hey, I'm sorry about that. Where were we?"

Like the other interviews, I bought Beth lunch while we continued to talk. By the end of it all, I realized I liked her, but I wasn't fully sold. The second interview with the Black-Eyed Peas guy had been really good. I wasn't going to be his best friend anytime soon, but he seemed knowledgeable in this arena.

"It was really great to meet you, Beth." I shook her hand after Natasha had done the same.

Beth gave me another smile and brought her other hand on top of the one she was shaking, "Thank you so much for this opportunity. I'm honored to even make it this far! I know I have zero experience on this, but I just want to say that—that I'm a hard worker and a quick learner. I promise you'll always get 110% from me."

The last-minute little speech reminded me a lot of the one I gave to Pepper what felt like ages ago. It was hard to make your own place in the world and girls like us had to stick together, right? A small smile slid onto my face, "Thanks, Beth. I'll call you and let you know our decision regardless."

Beth gave me one more bright smile before leaving. Natasha hooked her arm through mine as we began to walk back on the path to the Tower, "You're going with her, aren't you?"

"Was I that transparent?"

"I just know you well, Aj." Natasha smirked. "You see yourself in her."

"Maybe. Plus, it'd be easy for us all to get along with her."

Natasha nodded, "I agree. Better than interview applicant number three."

"Preach, sister."

She wasn't bringing up the topic of Bucky and I hoped that meant I had gotten away with it. If she didn't call me on it, I wasn't going to press further. Not looking a gift horse in the mouth and all that.


Tony was so used to watching everyone, including him, mother Aj that he realized he had never actually seen her in full blown 'mother hen' mode, as she called it. It was interesting. It also left him with not much to do. He leaned against his lab table while Aj went into minute 12 of her lecture/rant. Tony had invited Peter over for science hour, but it had actually been an intervention of kinds. Aj was determined to get the kid to hang up his hoodie. Tony knew it wouldn't work, but it was fascinating to watch nonetheless.

"—and another thing, you should be focused on school." Aj slapped her hand into the palm of her other hand while Peter's frown deepened. "You're a kid genius, Pete. An absolute genius on par with Tony Stark—"

"Well—"

"Shut up, Tony." Aj didn't miss a beat. "You're going to do amazing things one day, but none of that is gonna happen if you get shot in some alley!"

Peter shook his head, "Aj, you don't get it—"

"No, I do!" Aj replied sharply. This lecture was taking a sudden turn into very emotional territory and Tony was prepared to step in. "Peter, I used to be smart too! I wasn't a kid genius, nowhere near it, but I loved school. I loved learning, and I wanted to succeed it in, but instead I threw myself into fight after fight—"

Tony stepped forward and set his hand on her forearm, "Aj."

Aj yanked her hand away from him and set both of her hands on Peter's shoulders, nothing but absolute desperation in her voice, "Pete, no one stopped me. Granny tried, she did her best and just like you I had excuses, but I didn't have someone as stubborn as me to put their foot down." She squeezed his shoulders. "Don't throw away your future because you think you have no choice. Because you do, Pete. There's always a choice."

Peter steeled his features and raised his hands to rest on her wrists, "I know, Aj, and I appreciate it. I promise I'll stay focused on school too, I won't slack off, but… I need to do this. I need to."

Tony saw Aj's face fall. He cleared his throat, "Why, Pete? Why do you think you need to do this?"

He knew the answer to this already. The general idea of it, at least. He had seen it in the kid on day one. It was the same kind of dumb, do-good, chaotic energy that fueled nearly every single Avenger.

"My Uncle died in the Battle of New York." Peter sucked in a sharp breath. "He was a firefighter and he responded to the emergency and he…he didn't come back." There was a beat of silence and Tony could feel the aching pain radiate off Aj. "Uncle Ben taught me something though. He lived it until his very last moment. He always said that if I could help someone, if I had the ability to make a difference, then it was my responsibility to do it." Peter shook his head firmly. "I have that ability now. That means, if I sit back and do nothing while the bad things happen…then those bad things happen because of me."

The words settled in the silence around them, and he could see Aj being torn between pride and anger and defeat. Tony figured now would be a good time to showcase his newest project.

"JARVIS, bring up the 'Itsy Bitsy Spider' designs."

Screens flew up in front of him and he expanded them so Peter and Aj could look. The moment he made the connection between Spiderman and Peter he had started on this project. It wasn't hard to figure it out. The kid was a genius, but he was no super spy. In fact, he was the exact opposite of a super spy. Tony found it funny that he knew two spiders, one was the definition of deceit, disguises, and quick thinking while the other was a naïve, innocent, baby faced kid who could pick up a bus and throw it down main street.

Side note, he also knew two birds, one was a trash fire hobo that would stick an IV line of coffee into his arm if Bruce wasn't constantly stopping him and the other was a veteran therapist little shit. His life was funny that way.

"Is that—Is that a suit?" Peter's eyes widened.

"Yupp. The hoodie is a little pathetic."

"I worked hard on that." Peter pouted.

Tony began to point out different features he had planned like bullet proofing, an emergency parachute, an in-suit heater, and various other lifesaving tools. He made sure to look Aj directly in the eye when saying some of them. He knew it would put her at ease.

"Any suggestions? Things about your spiderling powers I don't know about?" Tony questioned. Peter nodded, opening his mouth to speak, but Tony motioned to an empty screen, "Start jotting it down. We'll work on it today."

Peter quickly went to work, and Tony pulled Aj away from him with a soft smile. Aj twisted her lips and crossed her arms across her body, "I like the suit idea, but I still think he should just retire early."

"If 15-year-old you was given superpowers and the ability to protect your world, what would you have done?" Tony raised an eyebrow at her.

Aj huffed, "I would've thrown myself into any criminal activity I could find, but Tony I am not a role model. We should not be basing his choices of what I would do."

"He's a good kid that just wants to help the world." Tony replied.

"How are you ok with this? This is insane. He's a baby."

Tony nodded, "I know, but I also know he's gonna do this regardless. I would rather have a hand on the steering wheel of this car rather than watch it careen off the road while I stand on the sidewalk." He motioned behind him where the kid was still diligently working. "This is how we keep him safe, Aj."

She sighed, but he could see she understood his words. Aj poked him in the chest once, "Fine, but you get that suit done quick. The faster he's out of that damn hoodie the better I'll feel." Aj rubbed her face in exhaustion. "I told Amber and May that I would keep an eye on their kids. Mj is easy. She goes to debate club and sasses me over texts. Peter on the other hand…"

"Ah, the joys of parenthood." Tony wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"I'm gonna have Nat teach him some stuff. She'd do that right?"

"She'd do anything for you. Literally. You could ask her to murder someone and she wouldn't even ask questions." Tony replied. He nodded once, "That is a good idea though. Have mama spider teach baby spider how to work the web."

Aj pulled away from him, "Ok, I gotta go call the applicants and tell them who got the job."

"Oh, you picked someone?"

"Yeah, a girl named Beth Whitmore." Aj replied. "She's got SHIELD and Nat's seal of approval and I like her."

Tony smirked, "Good. Have her start after New Year, yeah?"

"Duh. I'm gonna spend the next two weeks learning what this job even is and how to be a boss." Aj scoffed.

Today was Monday and next Thursday was Christmas. Time had flown by since Aj got here. He knew she was working on Christmas dinner plans much like she had done for Thanksgiving, but Christmas was usually easier. Tony still had to finish planning his surprise Avengers getaway for the year. It would be the third major trip they took. Year 1 one was the Alpines for skiing, year 2 had been a tropical Christmas in the Bahamas, and this year he was thinking maybe Disney? He had a feeling Aj probably never had a family Disney trip before and Tony had been meaning to get Pepper out to Paris sometime this year. Aj, of course, had no idea about any of this. He thought it might be fun to tell her the day before they leave.

"You pick out Christmas gifts, yet?" Tony asked. "I already got your Jeep ready—"

"That is not under $20!" Aj snapped.

Tony shrugged, "We said gifts can be homemade. You think I can't make a Jeep?"

The way Aj's face morphed from confusion, to disbelief, then to a retired exhaustion made him chuckle. It was so easy to rile her up. Aj discreetly flipped him off and then turned to leave. Peter called out and raced over. He tackled Aj in a hug.

"I'm sorry I made you sad. Thanks for caring though, Aj."

"You didn't make me sad, kid." Aj chuckled and returned the hug, "I'm just a worrywart."

"That she is." Tony grinned and ignored her glare. "I told her you'd be fine."

Peter grinned then his eyes widened, "Oh, can we get back to the suit now? I told Ned I'd meet him at 5:30 to build a 4,000 piece Lego death star with him."

Tony and Aj shared a look of amusement. She raised an eyebrow at him, and he clapped his hand on Peter's shoulder, "Ok, baby spider, let's go."

"Hey, I'm 15!"

Ignoring, the kid's arguments he dragged him back to the screens for a little more design work. Tony agreed with Aj on that one point. The faster he got Peter out of that damned hoodie and intro some Kevlar, he'd feel infinitely better.


"Bang." Natasha rolled the word off her tongue. "You're dead. Again."

I groaned and she let go me so I fell forward. I caught myself by my hands and pressed my forehead against the training mat. This was by far the most intense training session we've had. It started off normal, but Natasha was not holding back by any means.

"Nat, I'm tired, can I go?" I pleaded and pushed myself up to face her.

She held the dummy gun in her hand up for me to see again, "Not until you take the gun from me without dying."

"You've metaphorically killed me 12 times." I replied dryly.

The goal of this training session was to teach me what to do when I had someone pointing a gun to my head. I could guess why they decided to move this one up in the lesson plans. According to Natasha, there was no room for error with this. Which, again, makes logical sense. I'm not going to get a second try if someone's threatening to shoot my head off my shoulders.

"Fine." Natasha stuck the gun into the back of her waistband. "But you have to tell me who you were talking to on the phone this morning."

My eyes widened, "I already told you. Tony wouldn't—"

"Yes, Tony never shuts up, I know, but you weren't talking to him."

"I, uh…" I desperately tried to find an answer in my brain. How do you lie to the Black Widow? I cleared my throat, "Nat, it wasn't anyone important…" She raised an eyebrow at me, and I sighed. That didn't work. She crossed her arms with a smirk, and I nodded, "I was talking to an old friend."

Her eyes hardened, "From the ring?"

"No." I said quickly with a shake of my head. They wouldn't like me talking to anyone I knew from the ring. "A friend from—from high school."

Natasha narrowed her eyes at me, "A friend from high school? I thought you didn't have friends in high school?"

"Ok, I didn't, but it hurts my feelings when you say it like that." I snarked. There was only one person I considered close to a friend in high school so I guess that's where this plan of mine was going, "Friend is a strong word, it's not like I let him get too close, but he—"

"Him? He?"

I nodded, "His name is Josh. Granny, uh, reconnected us."

Natasha studied my features for a moment, and I tried to stay as level faced as I could. Her eyes widened in surprise, "You like him."

Josh Thompson was the high school football star that, yes, I did have a crush on. Everyone did in high school. He was a jock, he was smart, he was nice. For a small Alabama school, he was a hell of a catch. Josh was also one of the few people I talked to on the regular back then. I haven't spoken to him since high school graduation and I didn't even know where the hell he was or what he was doing with his life, but he sure did make an excellent excuse.

"I—I did. Back in high school, I mean." I waved her off. "It was a stupid crush. I'm just getting to know him again is all. No biggie."

"Why did you lie about it?"

"Why did I lie to you about who I was talking to?" I repeated the question to buy myself a little more time. "Clint actively looks for things to mock me about. I wasn't going to put this kind of ammunition in the air."

Natasha shrugged in agreement. She gave me a smirk, "Then I'll do my best not to tell him." I gave her a quick thanks and she continued. "Tomorrow morning. 6 AM. Meet me here."

I blinked in confusion, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Meet me here at 6 for weight and endurance training." Natasha replied in ease. "Then you'll do the same the next day, and the next day, and so on."

My first thought circled back to the information Daisy gave me weeks ago. Maybe their long-term plan had involved turning me into some kind of agent, but maybe Vincent Morgan had pushed their timeline up. They figured the faster I became an agent then the faster I wouldn't be a liability? It made sense. They had been on a mission, focused on HYDRA, and my dumbass nearly getting kidnapped had distracted them. I don't think I was quite ready to board the inhuman train, I was still trying to slowly absorb that information, but I could do this for them. It was more in my wheelhouse.

"Ok." I sighed. "Sounds like a real fun time."

"Good. Now let's text Steve and let him know you're skipping out on Netflix." Natasha hummed and slipped her arm through mine, "I'm stealing you for girls' night."

I smirked and mumbled out a confirmation. I was sure 'girls' night' was just her way of trying to get me to tell her more about my non-existent new relationship with Josh, but it would be fun all the same.