"It's hope! It's all about hope!"

Fury increased the volume on his phone and he replayed the message again, ignoring the way Natasha's screams made tiny incisions in his heart each time he listened to them.

"It's hope! It's all about hope!"

He rewound and played the message again.

"It's hope! It's all about hope! Tell Ria-!"

It was amazing how every time he listened to the message, Fury could hear a new layer of pain and urgency in the usually stoic redhead's voice as she screamed her last before she cut off and the call ended. Arianna had left as soon as he'd played the message the first time, her expression so dark Fury was actually worried. The fire in her eyes was unlike anything he'd seen except in the wrong kind of people. He just hoped Coulson's presence would keep the young agent from doing something she'd regret later.

For now, Arianna was out back, most likely pummeling a punching bag into the wall. If she hadn't gone for her knives. Usually, the brunette spy refrained from reaching for her favourite weapons (first taught to her by Clint) unless they were at SHIELD's training grounds where there were targets and mannequins specifically designed to take weapons. But there wasn't much usual about their current situation. And Fury knew deep down he wouldn't hold it against the agent if she ruined public property and created extra paperwork. Not this time.

"Four hours to sunup, sir."

Fury didn't even lift his head from his phone as he responded to Coulson, "I haven't forgotten."

Coulson settled into the seat across from Fury's at the diner they had taken over and he began cautiously, "Sir, I understand that this Prince Loki situation is the very reason you proposed the Avengers Initiative, for a group of remarkable individuals to fight the battles we can't."

"I wrote the speech." Fury snapped before he sat back and sipped his coffee. It burnt all the way down. "Where's Arianna?"

"Still out back." Coulson sighed and Fury frowned.

"Is it wise to leave her alone? She's the last one left." He reminded Arianna's handler.

"She isn't alone, although she no doubt wants to be." Coulson replied grimly before he took a deep breath. "And she's not the last one, sir."

Fury glanced up and Coulson regarded him seriously.

"There's one other name left."

Coulson pushed across the file he'd brought along - the signed original of the order giving the green light on the Avengers Initiative. An order with only one signature.

"Yours." Coulson pointed out unnecessarily.

Fury stared down at his signature. That was a depressing statement, he thought. Just a week ago, he'd had five names on the list excluding his own. Now, following the loss of Bruce Banner and Natasha, it was just him and Arianna left… Another thought occurred to him and Fury lowered his mug.

"Not the only other Avenger." He muttered as he pushed himself out of the booth where he'd been holed up since they'd learnt of Natasha's death.

Coulson watched his boss stand and leave with utter confusion. "What?"

But Fury didn't respond as he strode out of the diner. He walked past the agents stationed all around the block and directly to his car. Climbing inside, he popped open the glove compartment and withdrew the familiar, square device he always kept in there for emergencies.

"Is that a beeper from the '90s?" Coulson asked incredulously as he peered inside from the window. Fury nodded.

"Also our last hope." He paused as the word suddenly hit him a little differently and it was like a lightbulb went off in his head.

"Hope. It's all about Hope." Fury repeated slowly, understanding finally dawning. He chuckled despite himself and he couldn't stop himself from murmuring admiringly, "Widow."

Coulson still looked confused but Fury just tossed the beeper back into the glove compartment. Dialing on his phone, Fury spoke as soon as his call was answered.

"Aria."

She didn't respond but he could hear her breath, still heavy, over the line. Although whether it was from emotion or exertion, Fury couldn't tell. He didn't ask either.

"Come out to the front. Immediately."

He hung up and he switched the engine on.

"Boss?" Coulson asked, puzzled, even as Arianna came sprinting around the coffee shop.

It should have worried Fury that she outpaced the other agents who had clearly belatedly started to chase after her when she bolted - but he was too proud to really mind as Arianna drew up to the car and climbed in through the open window in seconds.

Coulson glanced from Arianna to Fury as he asked, "Where are you going?"

"Not sure." Fury replied as Arianna buckled in beside him without question. "Either make a pact with a god or a deal with a devil."

With that, he took off, tires screeching as he left Coulson and the other agents behind in the dust.

"What's the plan, boss?" Arianna asked tightly, speaking for the first time since Natasha's death. Her knuckles were white around the knives she still carried in her hands. Fury noticed but didn't comment on it as he instead answered her question.

"We're going to get the son of a b*tch that killed Barton and Romanoff."

"Good." Arianna snarled. There was a beat of silence.

"Who is it?"

Arianna watched as the Asgardians carted off their crown prince's killer.

"Then you honor her." Hank Pym cried back at Fury as he was dragged past his daughter's grave. "Then honor her!"

Arianna held no sympathy for the man's misery as he was taken away. She hadn't known Hope Van Dyne very well given the agent had died two years ago, right when Arianna had been starting her career at SHIELD. But not even the loss of his beloved daughter could condone what Pym had done in Arianna's books. Murdering innocents simply to get back at Fury for having been the one to send Hope on her final mission. Killing someone else's beloved family just so he could feel a little bit vindicated. He was no longer a bereaved father; he was simply a monster in Arianna's eyes.

"You should have let me at least take out an eye." Arianna finally said once Pym was out of sight and hearing.

Fury shrugged.

"It wouldn't have made you feel better. Trust me."

Arianna's lip jutted out although she would have denied she ever pouted.

"I'm pretty sure breaking his leg would have made me feel better." She muttered.

But Fury ignored her as he instead turned to the God of Mischief who was still standing beside them. Loki was watching Arianna with thinly veiled amusement and curiosity but he caught Fury's eye and gave him a charming smile.

"Well, this was an absolute pleasure, Director Fury." He began, sounding much more pleasant than the first time they had met. Indeed, he almost seemed delighted - and Fury suspected it wasn't entirely because of how much he'd enjoyed himself while playing mind games with Pym before his arrest.

It was due to this suspicion that Fury said a little sharply, "Good. Now take your hammer and get off my planet."

"About that," Loki chuckled. "We should be allies. You know, I've just had an idea. I was thinking I might extend my stay here on Midgard."

Beside Fury, Arianna slowly turned to stare at the god. Fury meanwhile frowned uneasily.

"For how long?" He asked warily.

"Good evening, my loyal subjects." Loki greeted with a wide smile as he stood in front of the former UN stage. He was flanked by Asgardian soldiers and where before there used to be a globe behind Loki, there was now an enormous statue of the god.

"It is with great pride that I stand before you today to announce that in just one day's time, the nations of Earth have put aside their differences and united under my command. It's the unspoken truth of humanity that you crave subjugation. The bright lure of freedom hobbles you, diminishes your life's joy. You were made to be ruled. So I have come to help you fulfill your destiny."

Arianna shut off the broadcast by throwing a knife into the screen. Her face was pulled into a fierce scowl that only grew darker when her phone rang, interrupting her wallowing. Grabbing the mobile, Arianna checked the caller before she swiped to answer it.

"I'm busy."

"Doing what? Stewing in your own misery?" Fury asked dryly. Arianna didn't bother denying it.

"I assume you called because you saw the live broadcast." Fury's silence was all the answer she needed. "I told you, you should have let me stab him in the eye."

"How would stabbing Hank Pym have helped?" Fury asked incredulously.

"It would have made me feel better."

At her response, Fury sighed.

"You know, at times like this, you really do remind me of Barton."

Arianna instantly went quiet. Fury didn't bring up her wounds just because he liked to watch her lick them. There was always an ulterior motive with her boss (technically former boss since SHIELD had been officially dissolved following Loki's global takeover).

"Why did you call?" Arianna asked in a low voice.

"The Avengers was an idea. The affirmation of humanity's need to believe that in our darkest hour, we will find our heroes."

"Are you writing a new speech, Nick?" Arianna asked wearily, leaning back in her chair and twirling her spare knife between her fingers absently. But Fury pressed on grimly.

"Romanoff and Barton might finally be at peace, but we're not."

Arianna straightened slightly, putting down her knife as she listened a little more intently. Like she knew Fury knew she would.

"I believe that in this universe, as in every other, hope never dies." Fury went on. "As long as someone keeps their good eye on the bigger picture."

Arianna frowned. Fury's words had nudged something within her cold body. Mostly because Arianna knew that Fury would never have talked like this if he didn't have something else up his sleeve. But what possible hope was there left in this bleak world Arianna had been left behind in?

"What's the plan this time, boss?" She asked.

Fury trekked the icy landscape with Arianna in tow. The sole survivor of team DELTA hadn't exactly jumped at the chance to go with him but she hadn't disagreed either. Not that that had surprised or stopped the former SHIELD director.

Fury wasn't blind to the fact that ever since Pym's arrest, Arianna had become a little… lost. She still followed orders and had enough snark to rival Tony Stark. But she hardly reacted to anything, hardly held any emotion. Without the vengeance to find Clint and Natasha's killer driving her, she had fallen into what Coulson had dubbed autopilot mode. Doing as told, not doing anything when not told. The only thing she refused to do was step into SHIELD's old headquarters. It was filled with too many happy memories that brought far more pain than any torture she'd had to endure before. But other than that, Arianna just drifted through life like a ghost. There, but not really there.

But he was determined to change that. And he'd finally found the perfect solution after over sixty years of SHIELD searching.

After wandering inside the frozen remains of the 1940s airship for a good while, Fury finally spotted what he'd been looking for. Kneeling down, he wiped at the frost covering the figure that was perfectly preserved in the centre of the cockpit and hope flared in his heart as he saw the familiar shield locked in the ice. And underneath, he knew, was the man the world had called the bravest soldier. And the man whom legendary Peggy Carter had once described simply as a man with a good heart… looking for the right partner to dance with.

"Welcome back, Captain." Fury murmured down at the frozen figure of Steve Rogers.

He looked up to see the fire returning to Arianna's hazel eyes as she stared at the original of the symbol that adorned every surface Coulson owned. Just as Fury had hoped. And then his heart swelled even further as he sensed a new presence behind him. One he'd been waiting for.

Turning, a rare smile broke across Fury's face as he stared at the youthful face that hadn't changed at all in the last fifteen years. Carol Danvers smirked right back at him and she smacked her fist into her palm.

"So where's the fight?"

Arianna had whirled around, posture tense, when she had felt the sudden, unfamiliar presence. Now, she relaxed and she glanced at Fury.

"I like her." Arianna announced.

Fury's smile widened although there was a melancholy tinge to it now. He wouldn't tell Arianna yet, not so soon, but he'd tell her one day. When the time was right, he would tell her how those had been the first three words Clint Barton had said years ago when he'd first returned from recruiting Arianna.

Five years later

Arianna stood in the middle of the new training room in the Avengers Compound, staring unseeingly at the far wall.

It was amazing how much had changed in the last five years. Five years ago, she'd lost almost everything and a part of her had been convinced that nothing could ever make her feel alive again. Not after losing her second, chosen family. And yet, life was funny. Life went, however miraculously, on. And here she was, five years down the line, living life alongside her third and hopefully last family.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Arianna glanced back over her shoulder to see Fury walking into the room, his hands clasped behind his back.

"You pop up awfully often for a guy pretending to be dead." Arianna noted dryly. Fury chuckled.

"Well, someone's got to keep an eye on you from time to time."

"I thought that was Coulson's job?" Arianna joked and Fury smiled.

"It was his job. Now he's preoccupied with the new kids. Which reminds me."

Fury handed Arianna an envelope.

"This is for you."

Arianna tilted her head but accepted the nondescript envelope. Her skepticism rose as she felt the weight and contents of the envelope but she opened it anyway. Only to freeze when she saw exactly what was inside.

"We finally managed to find the last of Widow's hidey holes." Fury explained as Arianna slowly extracted the broken knife handle and chipped arrowhead that was nestled snugly inside. "This was the first time we found anything. Which makes me think Budapest was her last hole."

Arianna didn't say anything as she turned the damaged arrowhead around in her hand. She recognized the arrowhead at once. The chip on the corner and the pattern of the break in the shaft made it unmistakable. It had, after all, been all that they could find after Clint had been captured on the edge of Budapest. Arianna hadn't realized Natasha must have pocketed it after they decided to go in to save Clint despite their orders. As for the broken knife handle… Arianna grasped the familiar handle. It had been all that was left after they managed to escape from that blasted Budapest mission. By the time they reached the SHIELD safehouse, Clint had long run out of arrows and Arianna had run out of knives except for the one that someone had shot the blade right off of. She'd tossed it upon reaching the safehouse where she'd restocked… But Natasha must have pocketed that too.

Arianna felt tears prickling her eyes as she traced the faint engraving on the handle right where one's hand would close around it. It was only three lines and to anyone else who might have picked up the handle, it would be easily overlooked. But Arianna had held that knife more times than she could count and she knew the markings hadn't been there before. Just as she knew exactly what the triangle, which matched the tiny engraving that had been made on the damaged arrowhead, stood for.

"Delta." Arianna murmured, a tear slipping out the corner of her eye as she brushed over the markings that were undeniable proof of Natasha's love for her chosen family. A love that had been unconditionally returned.

Fury watched her quietly, feeling oddly relieved as he saw the tear escaping freely down Arianna's cheek. He hadn't ever thought he'd see her able to cry again - but it looked like his hopes had been answered. All thanks to a certain fair-haired captain.

Nodding to himself, Fury turned and started to leave as Arianna tucked her two treasures into her utility belt

"Nick?" She called after him.

"Hm?"

Fury glanced back at her impassively. But there was a gleam in his eye that told Arianna he knew exactly what she was going to ask.

"Back in 2010, when Loki took over Earth..." Arianna began. Fury smirked but Arianna continued anyway.

"You took me with you to find Steve. Not Phil."

"Your question?" Fury asked with a blank expression that couldn't quite completely mask his amusement.

"You planned it, didn't you?" Arianna asked bluntly. Fury smiled the same smile tinged with melancholy that he got when he remembered the first team Arianna had ever been assigned to.

"You really do take more after Barton. Natasha was always subtler."

Arianna's lips curled into a half-smile, her hazel eyes softening as she too remembered her first team. Fury meanwhile collected himself and he said briskly, "To answer your question: I just gave you a push. I've always just hoped for the best and made do with what I got."

He gestured around the Avengers facility that now housed an entirely different collection of people than those Fury had once envisioned and planned for. And yet, it was the exact same collection of people he had wanted.

"I got a great team. The rest is and always was up to you."

"That didn't actually answer my question." Arianna pointed out.

Fury shrugged. "But you know how to read between the lines. Natasha and I taught you that."

Arianna grinned back, and Fury nodded outside.

"Looks like your fiance is about to wrap up."

Arianna glanced outside to see Steve walk out the front doors with Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes, the trio exchanging light banter.

"I think now's about the right time for you to get out there."

Arianna chuckled, shaking her head a little.

"You're a hopeless romantic underneath all that spy gear, Nick." She teased as she strode towards the door.

"Never said I wasn't, Aria." Fury called back as he also went on his way and Arianna smiled a little. Something she hadn't ever imagined she could do again after Natasha and Clint's deaths. And yet…

Steve looked over when he heard her approach and he grinned widely despite the teasing that earned him from Sam. Bucky was far more relaxed as he gave Arianna a nod while absently rolling the vibranium arm that Prince T'Challa had gifted him after their recent saving the world job had busted Bucky's old Hydra arm while he was rescuing King T'Chaka.

"What did Fury want?" Steve asked curiously as he wrapped an arm around Arianna and tucked her against his side as per usual.

"Just walking down memory lane.

Arianna leant her head against his chest right against his steady heartbeat that never failed to soothe her. Steve tilted his head curiously but Arianna just shook her head.

"Don't worry about it."

Steve accepted that and he kissed the top of her head. He knew and she knew the details of each other's past. But it was one thing to know and another thing to know. And just like Steve only really had Bucky to talk to about their friends from the 40s, Arianna only had Fury and Coulson to talk to about the people from before Steve came out of the ice. Her family whom Steve had never met. But he knew of them.

And as Arianna's heart beat against his, Steve silently thanked the two former spies who had loved and protected Arianna long enough for him to meet her and fall in love with her.