Chapter 3

The bus bumped and chuttered along through the New York traffic, making slow progress towards the field trip destination.

"This is gonna be so sweet!" The boy, Ned, had squeezed his way through the crowded bus and plopped himself next to Subject Three. This was a problem. Too much attention was not a good thing. "We went to Oscorp a while back but the place is so cool! The tech they have there is almost as good as Tony Stark's. Though a lot of it is more research tech."

Three barely glanced at Chatterbox. He smelled of nervous sweat, teenage hormones, and too much deodorant as nearly every teenager in this bus did. What not every teenager smelled like was an overly excessive amount of anxiety. Chatterbox's friend, a nervous kid who sat perched on the edge of the seat next to his friend. Peter. That was the name. The anxiety wafted around him, his hands fidgeted and his legs bounced. Not quite fear but close. Yet there was still that underlying smell about him that was… off. No other way to put it. He was in a world of his own, staring at the floor and had headphones in. The perfect partner - if the school had partners. She had heard some schools had you 'buddy up' on field trips. Was that how this worked? Or only in younger grades? They hadn't prepared her for that part.

The bus rolled to a stop, everyone piled out and Three managed to shake Chatterbox as he was distracted by the building before them. A middle aged, plump woman came to greet them, her fake lavender perfume so strong it could kill a small dog, "Welcome to Oscorp Incorporated! This is our research facility. I'm Tina. I ask that you stay with me and in the group unless told otherwise. Any wandering will be met with an immediate dismissal from the building." Her bright smile, as fake as the perfume, flashed, "Now come this way, please."

They followed the woman through as she talked and talked and talked. Cameras were perched at every corner, guards making regular routes while others stood sentry in doorways, movement sensors on the floor. Three mentally pulled the blueprint in her mind, she knew where she was going. She knew the mission. Now to pull it off.

The class drifted towards an elevator and went down two floors. Lavender, the tour guide, waved her hand out as the door opened and they found themselves in front of what seemed to be a lab of some sort. "This is our research laboratory for arachnids and…" That smell of anxiety and nerves was overpowering the toxic lavender. Didn't help that the kid was right beside her. He was paler than a sheet of paper.

"You may look around the lab but please do not touch anything."

"Hey, you okay?" Three looked over, she'd stand out if she didn't talk amongst the class. She stood out enough as she was new even though it was only the beginning of the school year. She had chatted to a couple girls in class but had yet to say much on the field trip. Might as well start with him. "You look like you're about to be sick."

Peter just nodded, "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Just… uh... scared of spiders!" That would explain why he was so afraid. Yet a lie is easy to detect and he was more than likely lying.

"Oh man, I'm sorry for you. Not your lucky day then." With that, she went to wander the lab.

Talking to other people wasn't what it was cracked up to be. Sure, practicing was good so she wouldn't sound like a robot but there was little enjoyment to be had in it. She wasn't a widow or some spy and assassin combo and didn't want to be. The Winter Soldier was just stealth and kill. Or just kill. That would be perfect. But no. Since she was young and less likely to scare the wits out of someone just by looking at them it was her job to become the ultimate spy and occasional assassin. She could rip a man's head from his shoulders if she wanted to. Why the finesse?

Back to the mission. No more complaining. It was here. Had to be.

Wandering tables, feigning interest in the various arachnids and asking questions to the lab technicians that manned each table with plastic smiles. Not too many questions and not too much interest. Just enough.

Half the room had been covered. Not here so far. If it wasn't, then the secondary option would have to do. Her handler had told her that himself. They didn't trust her with a full scale stealth operation yet. Full scale assassination or torture interrogation with a chaperone just in case? Yes. She wasn't the brains yet. Thus, no wandering beyond the guidelines of the tour guide.

"So are you liking the field trip so far?" Great. Chatterbox. His smell and the nervous tension so many of his age had was starting to get overwhelming.

"I'm liking it pretty well." Three smiled, "I've always liked spiders."

"Peter too!" He did now? Interesting. But not the mission. Not important. "I don't- I mean I don't really see why anyone wouldn't like these uh… cuties." Ah, yes. The hope for mutual attraction by mutual feigned interest.

"Cuties, huh?" Three quirked an eyebrow.

He paled, "Y-yeah! They're just so cute with their little um eyes and uh hairy legs."

Three just smiled and kept walking. She placed her face next to the glass cage of a bright yellow spider the size of her eye. Cute was not the word she would use for this creature. What she would use is convenient as it was placed right next to what she needed and was labeled highly dangerous. Ned was beside her, in front of the target, and turning to her. Probably some observation of the 'cute' arachnid that was housed before him. Perfect. She shot up and turned as though suddenly done with looking at the bright yellow spider. The collision was directly under the chin, throwing him off balance into the table and her stumbling backwards towards the - arms that stopped her from falling? Peter had caught her. Not the plan. He hadn't been nearly close enough for that to be a possibility.

Ned, however, did go as planned. His arms flailing out, he went down and brought down the contents of the table in a glorious crash. Three took herself out of the other one's hands nearly as soon as she was caught and knelt down to Chatterbox. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry about that. I'm so sorry. " Three started picking things up and placing them on the table as the boy got onto his knees. "Are you okay? I'm so so sorry." Her hand fluttered to his face for a second, eyebrows scrunched, and eyes sincere. The standard look of concern. Lab technicians began to swarm, picking things up, pulling students away from the scene, taking Three and Ned off the floor. So much chaos, so little room for cameras to see.

"I'm - I'm okay." A nasty bruise was already forming and tears welled in his eyes. He'd be fine. It was just a headbutt. "It was my fault. I'm sorry. Are you okay?"

She rubbed the top of her head with a rueful smile, "My mum didn't call me thick headed for nothing!" Peter was beside Ned now. She turned to him. "Thank you, Peter, for catching me." For a little fun, she gave him the look. The look that most would interpret as, at the very least, starry eyed. The response was immediate and predictable. Ned's face drooped and Peter lit up. As disgusting as people were, they were also rather amusing.

"No, uh no problem, uh?" Great, he wanted a name.

"Bailey." She gave him a grin. The mission was complete and now to have some fun with the rest of the day.

--

"Getting some solid intel about a Hydra cell in upstate Maine. Sounds like a lab of some sort." Natasha sat, relaxed in the briefing room. "Besides that, I haven't heard anything about any others."

Steve nodded, "Okay. Vision, would you be willing to check it out with Nat?"

"I'm willing."

"Good. We'll make sure to be ready if it's a go."