A/N: Welp. Here is another chapter. I'm not as pleased with this one as I should be but nonetheless.
Natasha was good at reading people. Her eyes knew what to look for, and it was that reason among others that SHIELD recruited her for.
Staring at the woman in front of her now, she immediately started watching her body language. The way she stood between Steve and Bucky leaning all her weight on her left leg. The cocky smirk that was on her face as she stared around the room seemed to radiate. It made her look like she somehow had control, but that was to the untrained eye. Luckily for Natasha, she was trained.
She noticed immediately how the cocky smirk seemed forced as her jaw was slightly clenched. The way she leaned on her left foot made her appear casual but the way her body leaned in slightly towards Bucky made it seem as if she felt safer with him. Her eyes roamed around the room as she took in everything. It was as if her eyes were trying to remember every little thing that was placed before her. Natasha noticed really quick that the woman was looking for a possible escape route.
"Your brother?" Tony asked as he glared at Steve and Bucky, not that she could blame him. If what Vanessa was saying is true, then it's possible that the two men brought another Hydra agent into their nest, bringing the total up to two.
"Yes, my brother. Where is he?" She asked as she shifted her weight once again. Her arms came up and crossed over her chest.
"Hold on, can someone explain what is going on for a second?" Scott called out as he pointed to the woman. "You know her? How? That's the crazy lady who tried to take Peter!"
Natasha rolled her eyes at the man. God he can be slow sometimes. "We figured by the blood on her face," Sam mumbled but looked to Tony nonetheless. "Is she one of your one-nighters?"
Vanessa opened her mouth to reply but Tony cut her off.
"Can we focus on the situation at hand, please? Like how these two brought another Hydra agent here." Tony asked as he waved his hand violently at the two childhood friends.
"I'm not with Hydra."
"But your brother is," Natasha asked with a rise of an eyebrow.
"Yes."
Tony reached up and rubbed his temple before sharing a look with Happy who nodded and then left the room in the direction Pepper took Peter. Vanessa's eyes followed the man as if making a mental note of the way he went.
"Can we focus on why you brought her here?" Rhodes asked.
"She knew where the compound was," Steve announced.
"Did it ever occur to you that she may be lying?"
"I wasn't. You see, I followed Frank here, while he was following James."
"James?" Steve asked as he frowned his face, his eyes drifted to the man next to him.
"James, Bucky, whatever you call him these days." She said with a wave of her hand. "The point is, after I saw Frank sneaking away from my cabin, I decided to follow. Eventually we ended up here. Very nice by the way."
"Wait," Tony said as he held up a hand. "What cabin?"
"Oh, I have a cabin in the woods. It's not as nice as this, but it's home." Her shoulders gave a shrug.
Silence filled the room as they all seemed to try and think of something to do. "Lock her up, for now." Rhodes said with a sigh. "That's all we can do at this point."
"Or you can take me to see my brother."
"You do know that you are not in a position to demand things right?" Tony voiced, anger licking every word. Natasha raised an eyebrow at the man. Her eyes drifted down to where his hands were clenched in a fist.
Vanessa raised an eyebrow at him before shaking her head. "Fine, then I want to see Peter." Hope filled her voice as her eyes drifted in the direction the boy went earlier.
"What do you want with him?" Sam asked as he walked over and sat down on the nearest sofa as if he were getting comfortable for a long explanation. Natasha watched as Vanessa pursed her lips. Slowly the woman turned her head to the man next to her.
"How much did you tell them?" she asked, causing everyone to look at Bucky.
"Just what you told me," Bucky mumbled.
Steve raised an eyebrow as he looked between the two. Vanessa nodded once before looking at the group of Avengers around her. Her eyes raked over each of them with a hint of distrust. Her eyes landed on Tony the longest before looking around the room once more. She opened her mouth but closed it immediately. Finally, after a moment of silence, she released a sigh. Her head dropped slightly before she lifted it defiantly. "I want to see my brother."
Everyone shared a look before Tony threw up his hands. "Fine, Clint, take her to the brother." The archer stood and walked forward. He gestured his hands to the door and the woman walked out with a final glance back at Tony. Bucky and Steve made a move to follow but the billionaire spoke. "Hold it right there!"
The friends shared a glance before turning back to the rest. Sam stood, shaking his head. "I'll go with Clint. I'm too tired for a fight." With a final glance, he too left the room. Natasha looked between the three men before moving towards the kitchen.
"Play nice boys."
Peter followed as Pepper gently escorted him out of the room. He led her to a room, the same one he slept in days before, the only difference was, he was no longer wearing his suit. The same suit that was safely tucked away in the bookbag that he clenched. Pepper stepped further into the room, allowing him access.
"You can sleep in here. I know it's not decorated or anything but it's better than that death trap you were just in." The corner of Peter's mouth twitched when he heard the disgust and worry in the woman's voice. When he didn't respond, her eyes swept to his. A flash of disappointment filled them but it left as quickly as it came. Turning, she pointed to the door behind her. "It has its own bathroom, so you won't have to share. Don't worry about clothes, I can get you some."
Peter nodded to show that he heard and understood. Pepper glanced at him again then dragged her eyes to the bag in his hand. Peter brought it closer to his chest. She gave him a smile before pointing behind him to where a dresser was sitting. "You can put your stuff in there. I promise nobody will take it or mess with it." Peter pursed his lips but remained where he was. When the boy still didn't say anything, Pepper released a small sigh before walking over and sitting down on the bed.
Her eyes found his as she studied him carefully. "Peter, do you know that woman from the parking garage?"
Shit, Peter thought as he tried to keep eye contact. May always told him he was a bad liar. He opened his mouth to quickly deny it but the words fell short. Closing his mouth, he remained still, neither confirming nor denying. Pepper waited patiently before nodding as if she knew what he was trying to hide.
"Do you know her from Foster care?"
Peter shook his head in the negative.
"Before?"
Another shake.
"After?"
Peter hesitated before nodding his head slowly. A look of relief and worry filled her face. She tilted her head slightly before asking, "Has she ever hurt you?"
Peter was back to shaking his head.
Pepper seemed to think about that before nodding with a tiny smile. "Okay, good." She opened her mouth to say something else but her eyes swept to the door behind him. He quickly turned to see the man from earlier.
Happy Hogan.
"Tony wanted me to come back and stay with you."
"Is everything okay?"
The man glanced at Peter before looking at Pepper. The message was clear. Not in front of the child. Pepper stood and laid a hand on Peter's shoulder. He grew rigid under the gentle touch causing her to withdraw her hand. "Why don't you go ahead and get comfortable. I'll be back."
When he nodded, she followed Happy into the hall as the man cracked the door. Turning to the bed, he strained his ears to hear what was being said. Their voices were mumbled but he still heard every word.
"So apparently, the woman's name is Vanessa. I don't have a last name but I'm sure Friday will be able to. Tony knows her and he didn't seem happy to see her." Happy started.
"What is she doing here?"
"From what I heard she's here to see her brother."
"Her brother?"
"Yeah, some guy named Frank.
"Wait. Frank as in the Hydra agent we have locked away?"
"Sounds like it."
"You have got to be kidding me."
"Nope. She confirmed he was with Hydra. She denies any involvement with them though."
Silence filled the hallway as the two adults breathed. Suddenly the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stood at attention. Someone was watching him. Move, his brain commanded. Placing his backpack on the bed, he pretended to rifle around in it. After a while the feeling went away and the conversation resumed.
"How's the kid? He seems kinda, I don't know. Out of it."
"I'm sure he's frightened. I mean he is kind of on the run from the government and then he is randomly placed in the care of the Avengers. It's enough to scare anybody," Pepper explained. "He just stands there clenching his backpack."
"What's in it?"
"No clue."
"Want me to find out?"
Silence greeted the air before the sound of someone blowing out a breath was heard. "No. We want to gain his trust. If we do that, we break it."
"If you say so. What are you guys going to do when Fury finds out you have the kid? No doubt whatever SHIELD has going on they're going to want to take the kid."
"We just have to trust that the Avenger's know what-" Peppers voice trailed off as the sound of shouting penetrated the air. Staining his ears even more he focused on the words.
"...out of your fucking minds!"
"Tony relax, we-"
"If you say you didn't have a choice I will beat blast you all the way to Asgard!"
"Tony-"
"Why not just invite all Hydra agents to our front door! Hell, let's have a welcome picnic as well. Roast weenies and sing campfire songs!"
"If you would listen-"
"God am I the only one seeing reason here?"
"Nope," the softer voice of Natasha replied.
"The better question is how do you know her?" Steve voiced.
"Steve, now is not the time-" Bucky started.
"Now is the perfect time," Tony barked.
A hand on his shoulder caused the boy to jump and whirl around. Pepper and Happy stood staring at him in concern. The voices from the distance slowly faded away as his attention focused on the two people in front of him. Pepper gave him a cautious smile.
"Are you okay? You were spaced out a little."
Peter gave them a quick nod but he could tell they didn't believe him. Nonetheless, they dropped it. Pepper placed a hand on Happy's arm. "I was going to let you know that I'm leaving you with Happy while I go find some clothes for you to wear."
Peter settled his gaze on the man who nodded at him. Looking to Pepper he gave her a nod of understanding before watching her leave the room. The two males stood in silence as they regarded each other with curiosity.
"How can you see with all that hair in your face?" Happy finally asked. Red spread through the boy's cheeks as he ducked his head, hiding his face. Happy raised an eyebrow at him before shaking his head. "Hey kid," the man called. He waited until the brown pools that made up Peters eyes landed on him. "I was just kidding."
Peter nodded.
"Why don't you put your stuff down, you can jump in the shower. There are towels in the bathroom."
The thought of a shower sent a feeling of excitement though the boy. The last time he had a shower was when he was back at his last foster home. Feeling the warm water on his skin would feel amazing no doubt. Peter bit his lip at the thought but his feet remained planted as his mind brutally reminded him of Savannah and her brothers in the tunnels.
Peter sucked on his lip more before he shook his head in the negative. Happy raised an eyebrow. "You don't want to shower?"
Again Peter shook his head.
Happy released a grunt as he shifted his weight to his other foot. "Are you sure, you look like you haven't seen water in years."
Peter bit down harder on his lip sending the feeling of searing pain to his brain. Happy suddenly stepped forward, only to have Peter back up. The man raised his hands in a surrendering fashion. "Okay, relax. Stop biting your lip before you bite all the way though."
Peter released his lip at the command. Happy shook his head as he dropped his hands. "Geez kid, just relax. You're more wound up than Tony was when the Rouges came back." When the boy didn't respond Happy threw up his hands, only to notice the boy flinch.
"Fine. We can sit here in silence while we wait for Pepper."
Pepper walked out of the room leaving Peter with Happy but the moment she crossed the threshold, she jogged into the living room. Her eyes fanned across the room, fully expecting to see body parts being flung across the room, but to her surprise all things were still orderly. Natasha sat on a stool at the island, while she watched the exchange that was happening in the middle of the living room. Scott stood nearby looking confused as ever, while Bruce stood not too far off. Rhodes stood near Tony as if he were there to intervene if something happened. Bucky and Steve stood in front of Tony but out of striking distance. The only people who were missing were Sam, Clint and the woman, Vanessa.
"How do you know her?" Steve asked, looking at Bucky. The man rubbed a hand across his face.
"I knew her from back when I was at Hydra," the man confessed.
"I think now would be a good time to explain the sudden memory return," Rhodes voiced.
"She asked, 'What did you tell them?' That means you guys would have had to be in contact with each other sometime recently." Steve soldered on ignoring the other man.
"Yes. A couple days ago, when I went missing, she saved me from Hydra agents and took me to her cabin. She bandaged me up and-"
"Wait, is that where you got the information from? The information about SHIELD and Peter and-"
"Yes. Now it's your turn," Bucky announced as he crossed his arms over his chest as his eyes leveled with his childhood friend.
"Not yet," Natasha announced as she came over, holding a cup of tea. "The entire time you guys were talking while she was here, she was leaning on her left foot. More like leaning into you. She felt safe with you. That is enough to suggest that there may be more."
"I could be because she knew him from his Hydra days."
Natasha shrugged. "True, while Bucky was with Hydra, he was a machine. A weapon. He just said that she took him back to her cabin and cared for him. That suggests the relationship between the two of them is more than a weapon and organization."
All eyes landed on Bucky who averted his gaze to the floor. "Well?" Tony called in a way that showed his patience was wearing thin.
"Bucky?" Steve called.
The former Hydra agent sighed as he looked up. Shame filled his brown eyes as they traveled around the room. "Frank wasn't the only one who was nice to me when I was Hydra. Vanessa was as well. She would sneak me out of my cell and let me roam the grounds. She would bring me back after they turned me into Asset. She helped. After a while, things progressed and we...well...God, I don't know what to call it. It wasn't really dating but it wasn't just a one night thing either."
"You slept together?" Tony asked pointedly.
Bucky stared at him. "Yes, Tony. Multiple times, until one day someone caught us. The next thing I knew. She never came around again. I never saw her again until a few days ago."
"How long ago was this?"
"I don't know, about fifteen years ago give or take."
Silence filled the room as everyone absorbed the news. Finally Bucky turned to Steve. "You're turn."
Steve looked at his friend before shaking his head. "Oh do tell," Clint called causing everyone to turn to the door to find him and Sam standing there. "Well?"
All eyes turned to Steve. The Captain licked his lips before looking at his friend. "We dated years ago."
"How many years ago?" Bruce finally asked as he noticed the hesitant nature of his captain.
"About fifteen years, give or take."
"And what about you Tony?" Rhodes asked his friend. Pepper looked at her fiance.
"I don't know," the billionaire announced.
"Come on Tones."
"We may have slept together but I don't know."
"How do you not know?"
"I was drunk," the man announced off-handedly.
"How long ago was this?" Pepper finally asked, causing all heads to turn to her. Tony's eyes widened for a second as the man finally acknowledged her presence.
"Not while I was with you if that's what you're thinking," the man objected.
Crossing her arms over her chest, she waited for his answer. "Fifteen years, give or take."
