Disclaimer: I don't own anything canon.
Natasha
I woke up with a killer headache. Clint was sitting next to me, playing with his arrows and looking mad. Bruce was pacing, and Tony sat completely still in the chair next to me.
What the heck had happened? I remember the boy. I called the Director because he seemed to have powers. Clint, Steve, and I were getting debriefed by Fury. After he heard about Leo moving in, Fury did a full check on his profile.
It was… interesting. And depressing. Leo had had a rough childhood. Why didn't Tony take him in sooner?
However bad his younger childhood was, in the past year or two, it had definitely gotten worse. Popping up in random places around the world. There were a couple random pictures from security cameras with Leo soaked, cut up, and just basically hurt.
The director didn't seem to be all too concerned about the recent stuff, which I found weird.
Steve asked him why no one was tracking him. Fury said he had his reasons. I couldn't help but agree with Steve.
I snapped back to reality when Clint shook me. "You okay, Nat?" I nodded.
"What happened?" I asked rubbing my head.
"Leo happened."
"What?!"
"You don't remember?" Bruce asked, coming over. I shook my head no.
I slowly sat up. "Where's Fury? And Thor and Steve?"
"Thor and Steve left with Leo and his friends. Try and remember the fight. Leo hit you on the head pretty hard."
Leo knocked me out? This didn't make any sense. How had Leo, a scrawny teenage boy, knock me out?
Clint sighed. "Let's just show her. Jarvis, please show the video."
On command, the TV on front of me switched on and an unbelievable fight came. We- the Avengers- were taken down by teenagers, along with some of our own teammates. Thor and Bruce had just stood by, and Steve had actually SAVED one of the teens. What had happened?
Anger bubbled inside me. I turned fiercely to Bruce. He held up his hands defensively. "We don't know how, but one of the girls put the other guy to sleep. Sorry."
Clint sighed and shook his head. "I can't believe this. Teenagers. And Leo. I didn't even get to talk to him, but he seemed like a good kid. Terribly sad and angry, but good."
I turned to Tony. He still hadn't moved a muscle, which was alarming. I went over and kneeled in front of him.
"Tony?" I whispered. "Are you alright?" Bruce and Clint came up from behind me and kneeled too.
It took him a second, but he thankfully answered.
"It's crazy. I knew him for a day. And I feel like the world just ended."
We stayed silent, so he continued.
"I hoped for a lot. I still had family. Before him… I thought Pepper was the only thing I had left for a family. Then Leo came, like an answered prayer. Like fate suddenly wanted to give me a break. He gave me hope. And now he's gone. He betrayed us. He worked right under my nose, with cameras, locks, phones, even my suits. And it's all my fault."
Bruce, Clint, and I exchanged looks. "How was this your fault, Tony?" Bruce asked softly.
Tony sniffed. I realized he was crying, and not even trying to stop the tears. What had happened to the Tony bursting with pride?
"He picked up Thor's hammer." The three of us exchanged looks of shock. "Then he made Thor promise to keep a secret. Then Steve and I checked out his profile. Some things were… weird about it." He told us about the profile and the theory about Leo being half alien.
When he finished, I felt absolute rage towards Leo. He was an amazing spy, really. I hadn't even felt suspicious of him. He had managed to wiggle his way into Tony's heart. He had ruined the prospect of a new home, which I was actually very excited for, though I would never admit it. He had even managed to break up the Avengers. That was definitely crossing the line.
"We need to find him. Get some answers." I said firmly, standing up. Tony slowly looked up. He was still sad, but more determined. He was ready to go.
"We can't." Clint cut in. "Fury said to leave the matter alone."
Tony snorted, a bit of his attitude back. "He told you that, Cupid. Jarvis, scan all systems for spyware. And bring up my copy of Leo's flash drive. Look for anything on Esperanza Valdez."
"Yes, sir."
Bruce eyed him. "You have a copy of Leo's drive?"
"You wouldn't believe all the stuff on it. I was planning to return it in the morning before he would notice. I didn't put into account that he might have wanted to use it that night."
I rolled my eyes. Boys. So stupid sometimes.
We all gathered around Tony's virtual computer thingy and waited while Tony tapped around.
"Sir, I have found a file mentioning Ms. Valdez. No spyware detected." Jarvis said a few moments later.
Tony opened the file. We all leaned forward. A document with the blueprints of a warehouse and a strange language popped up.
Tony studied it for a moment before turning to me. "Can you read it?" I shook my head.
"Jarvis, translate please."
Dutifully, a copy of the document in English popped up beside the original.
"What is it?" Clint asked, not bothering to read it.
"Looks like blueprints." I responded.
"That is not all it is." Bruce said, running his hand along the text. "It seems Leo is attempting to find ways to prove his innocence of his Mom's death."
Tony stared at the screen. "Wow. He seems really sure he didn't do it."
"What if he didn't?" Clint suggested.
Tony shook his head. "The clues are all there. He was in the source of the fire. He has fire powers-"
"He was eight, Tony." I interrupted. "It might have been an accident. Someone might've even attacked him, we don't know."
Bruce nodded. "We need to get the facts ourselves. And while we're at it, we'll find Thor and Steve."
We all exchanged nods and sly smiles. It was always nice when we schemed behind Fury's back.
Tony cracked his knuckles and turned to the screen. "Let's find my nephew."
Another boring chapter! Lucky you! I'm gonna sleep now, it's nearly 11 PM where I live.
